


My Sweet Baby

by Shion (Nightmare_Taichou)



Series: Partners in Love [1]
Category: ONE OK ROCK
Genre: Drama & Romance, Established Relationship, Family Bonding, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, M/M, Mpreg
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-20
Updated: 2019-01-12
Packaged: 2019-03-21 16:37:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 50,843
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13744986
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nightmare_Taichou/pseuds/Shion
Summary: Taka’s eyes flew open as a wave of nausea hit him.He sprang up out of bed and darted to the bathroom, where he emptied the contents of his stomach into the toilet. For a minute or so he was slumped over the hardware, feeling as though he was going to vomit his entire gut.This has been happening for the past two days although for this entire week Taka felt like absolute shit.Coming down with the stomach flu was not on Taka's to-do list, but when he suddenly collapsed after their concert, both he and Toru will realize that it was more than just a simple "stomach flu" but something that'll change their lives forever.“Moriuchi-san, you’re pregnant.”Will they be able to cope with having a baby on the wayandkeeping out of the public's savage eyes? But most importantly, can Toru handle Taka's pregnancy hormones?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Although it is set in "Ambitions" Japan tour era, Taka has his curly green hair and the concert is set at a later date.

Chapter 1

“ _Sink your teeth in, give me what I want.”_

―One Ok Rock “ _Taking Off”_

…

The lights of the house flickered on as Taka took off his shoes at the genkan, heaving a sigh of relief. The day had been hectic ―they had a radio guesting, after which they headed to the Saitama Super Arena to see how well the setting up was going; to say Taka was tired would be an understatement. He was downright _exhausted._ It was a Friday ―the third of March, so they had roughly four weeks till the concert, but Taka knew that the time will fly by in the blink of an eye.

The petite vocalist plopped himself down on the sofa and stretched, hoping to relax his tensed muscles. His stomach rumbled at which he let out a groan. He really wasn’t in the mood to cook, so he decided to order take-out. He took out his phone from his back pocket to message Toru (who had gone to Osaka for a quick visit of his family) since he’d order for both of them.

― _What do you want for dinner? I’m thinking of ordering take-out._

Within a split second, Toru replied ― _You._

Taka’s face reddened at that statement before he burst out laughing. His face softened as he remembered the day they started dating. It’s been two years since then, and even though it’s been a bumpy ride, to Taka, these past two years as Toru’s lover has been the best of his life.

His nimble fingers typed speedily at the screen: ― _How would you like me?_

He loved playing along with Toru’s antics most of the times, as the guitarist’s expressions were often times priceless.

Toru replied in record time: ― _Bare._

At this, Taka’s face became redder than a tomato. Typing a quick message to his lover, Taka lazily rose up out of the sofa and marched upstairs to the bathroom. Quickly undressing, he hopped into the shower to allow the warm water run over his skin.

“I think I should’ve soaked in the tub instead.” he grumbled to himself.

When he was done some minutes later, he donned a black t-shirt ― _Toru’s shirt―_ to be exact. He headed into the kitchen to begin dinner, even though earlier, he wasn’t in the mood to. Just before he started, he took out his phone and started to play music. He sang along in perfect harmony and melody, filling the kitchen with his sweet, angelic voice.

…

Toru was itching to reach home.

When Taka had messaged him about what he wanted for dinner, he couldn’t restrain himself. Images flashed into his mind of a completely naked Taka lying beneath him, flushed and whimpering with pleasure. As if on reflex, his fingers typed a single worded response. But when Taka replied, he had to hit the brakes so as to not crash.

― _How would you like me?_

Toru was close to losing his shit with that sentence. Yet again, images rampaged in his mind, and after replying to his lover, Toru sped home, taking various shortcuts as he couldn’t wait to taste his beloved vocalist.

Soon, he was pulling up in his driveway and entering his house. The sound of music could be heard, but Taka’s sweet voice turned him on even more. He was singing one of their songs, and when the guitarist followed the voice and music to the kitchen, Toru heard all his rationality snapping.

He saw Taka dressed in one of _his_ shirts, the hem of it just stopping mid-thigh. Toru _loved_ to see Taka in black, as the colour accentuates his silky skin. The small vocalist darted to and fro in the kitchen, spinning and twirling with a smile on his face. What was more, Taka was so into singing that he didn’t even notice Toru standing by the entrance.

_Don’t go! It’s a mighty long fall_

_When you thought love was the top!_

_Oh no! It’s a wake up call ―_

Taka broke off when he felt a hand snake around his waist and one travelling upwards underneath his shirt. He knew who it was, but he was still surprised as he didn’t know when Toru had come.

“I thought I said I wanted you bare.” Toru softly said, “What are you doing in a shirt and boxers?”

“Good evening to you too.” Taka murmured.

“Mm-hmm...” Toru replied, nibbling on Taka’s ear as his hands roamed about on his small body. This earned him a moan from the vocalist as Toru’s touch was like fire that seared through his body. Taka shuddered when Toru’s hand made its way into his boxers, stroking him ever so gently.

“To-Toru...” Taka moaned out.

Before Taka knew it, Toru spun him around and pulled his body close to him. His mouth was devoured by the guitarist with such wantonness, reminding Taka of a starving beast. His tongue explored every corner of Taka’s mouth, entwining their tongues together. The vocalist wrapped his hands around Toru’s neck bringing his lover closer.

It was as though their bodies melted together.

Toru could feel him, his fullness, _everything._ Quickly, he pulled Taka’s shirt above his head, discarding it to the floor. He drank in the sight that was an aroused Taka, and licked his lips. His hands dove into Taka’s soft green and black hair, grabbing handfuls as he crashed their lips together.

Blindly, he lift Taka onto the kitchen island as he closed his hands around Taka’s waist. The vocalist’s skin was like refined silk ―smooth and soft on his hands. Gently, Toru peppered Taka’s neck with hot and fiery kisses, going down his chest. A sensual moan escaped Taka’s lips, this was music to Toru’s ears.

Taka ached for more.

It’s been a while since they last had sex, being that their Ambitions concert was coming up and all other interviews and rehearsals they had to attend.By the time they reached back home, usually, they were so tired that all they could do was kiss each other to sleep.

When he felt Toru lifting him up and placing him on the kitchen island, Taka couldn’t help but wrap his legs around the guitarist’s waist, securing him close. The feeling of Toru’s kisses against his skin sent explosive bursts of heat through his core, causing him to moan louder than before.

It was delightful torment.

Frantically, Taka unbuttoned Toru’s shirt and the younger man shimmed out of it so fast, he could have set a record. His hands moved down to his pants and fumbled with his buckle and zipper. The pieces of clothing fell to the ground with a loud clatter, Toru letting out a low groan.

He slid both his hands down Taka’s body, diving into the smaller man’s boxers. He didn’t stop, instead, he slipped the boxers off, and went in for the kill. Forcing Taka backwards onto his back, Toru slipped his hands between the smaller man’s thighs, eliciting a cry of pleasure from the vocalist as he touched the aching flesh.

The only thing Taka could feel was Toru’s touch, and wanting ― _craving_ for more, the petite man used his feet to push down Toru’s boxers, missing the smirk from the bleached blond. In one swift movement, Toru aided his lover and took them off, and leaned over onto him. He pressed his body against Taka’s, his hands slithering on those lusciously pale legs.

Grabbing one leg, he raised it upwards to rest on his shoulder. He poised his hardness at Taka’s entrance, and with a gentle thrust, he entered. A loud moan escaped Taka’s lips as pleasure surged through his small body.

“Fuck, Taka...” Toru groaned out in bliss as he thrust faster and faster, Taka’s muscles clenching around him as he changed the movements of his hips.

And with every thrust, Taka squirmed and writhed as his body was filled with electrifying pleasure. He dug his fingers into Toru’s shoulder, as the man got more aggressive (not that he minded).

With a primal grunt, Toru pulled out and slammed into him hard, making Taka hit a note so high that he thought it exceeded his vocal range of five octaves; his body arched upwards from the ecstasy. Toru’s movements increased, pounding deeper and harder into Takahiro.

“Ahh...To-Toru…!” Taka cried out loudly, his face flushed red with pleasure. They say starving beasts are the most ferocious, and Taka was experiencing it first-hand.

Hearing this, Toru lost it.

He grabbed Taka’s other leg and brought it up to his shoulder after which his hands slid onto the vocalist’s hips, pulling him forwards in one swift move, driving himself deeper. One thing Toru was glad for, Taka’s unbelievable flexibility ―he could arch his legs as high as he wanted and the vocalist wouldn’t be hurt.

Taka thought he was going into madness. The moment Toru rammed into him, pleasure beyond this world coursed through his body, fiery passion slowly driving him over the top. He _screamed_ with delight as Toru filled him completely, all the way to hilt.

With a sudden flip, Taka was turned onto his stomach and bent across the kitchen island, Toru running a hand through his smooth curly hair yet again and leaning over.

“Taka...” Toru’s baritone voice was laced with lust and wanton. Gently tracing his hands on Taka’s thighs, he hauled one of his feet onto the seat before leaning over him. His half-lidded eyes looked at Taka, taking in his _delectable_ figure ―the gracious arch of his back, the plump shape of his nice round ass...Oh yes, Toru thought, he’ll destroy him. “...I’m going to fuck you senseless.”

Taka shivered. He was already trying to keep his mind sane and now ―

“ _AHN!”_

A screech escaped Taka’s lips as he felt Toru enter him once again, his knees getting weak from the exhilaration. He gasped loudly, feeling Toru hit the right spot with the right amount of force.

“ _Toru!_ _Mo-More!_ _”_

Taka screamed his lover’s name as his body experienced a rapture. His body shook with violent spasms of pleasure, his insides on fire as Toru’s length ravished him mercilessly. Then, Taka moved his hips in matching Toru’s rhythm, getting a low guttural growl from the guitarist.

“To-To-To-ru-ru!” Taka screamed as he neared his climax. He couldn’t even call his name properly. “I-I-I’m-I’m ―!”

The taller male realized what Taka was trying to say, and took hold his member and pumped him, hard.

Taka’s frenzied screams mixed with Toru’s ecstatic grunts echoed in the kitchen, drowning out the music that had been playing for the longest while. Toru spilled his love inside Taka, and the vocalist relished in the feeling of being filled to be brim by his lover.

Taka went limp against the kitchen island, Toru embracing him tightly from behind, leaning over onto him.

“I love you, Takahiro.” Toru breathed into his ear, “I love you so much.” He said as he continuously kissed his neck and cheek.

With a chuckle, Taka said, “I love you too, Toru.”

That evening, the two had to eat take-out since their dinner ended up getting burnt.

…

The following day, Toru and Taka headed out for rehearsal, Taka dragging himself (although Toru carried him for the most part) as he was still aching from yesterday’s exploits with Toru. After they moved from the kitchen, they headed up to the bedroom where once again Toru proceeded to drive him insane with pleasure. His legs had ached and wobbled so much that he couldn’t even stand. Luckily, they didn’t have any where else to go that evening because God help Taka if they did.

As soon as the two arrived, Ryouta (and everyone else) noticed that Taka wore a turtle-neck shirt with his long jeans, seeming as though he wanted to cover up something. It was March, and although the time was a bitchilly, there was no need for the turtle-neck. And then again, since when did the vocalist even own a turtle-neck shirt? In addition to that, Taka was walking odd, and even noticed that he was limping. Concerned, the bassist asked, “Mori-chan, what happened to you?”

Toru grinned involuntarily while Taka tried to hide his deep blush. “Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.” he mumbled.

Ryouta nodded his understanding, totally missing the obvious look on the two band members. But, Tomoya didn’t. After Ryouta and Toru had walked off, he walked up to the vocalist, placed a hand on Taka’s shoulder and sighed,

“It must be hard being with a wild animal, huh.” the drummer said with pity.

Taka’s nostrils flared with embarrassment when he proceeded to kick the living daylights out of Tomoya.

“Toru-san!” Tomoya screamed, trying to escape Taka. “Save me! Save me!”

However, the two guitarists only looked at Tomoya, devoid of sympathy. They knew that either Tomoya said something to tick off Taka, or Taka was just being his usual self. But either way, they weren’t going to intervene.

With a shrug, they ignored him and continued on.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

“ _Wherever you are, I'm always by your side...  
_

_...we still have a long journey ahead..."_

One Ok Rock _"Wherever You Are"._

…

Taka’s eyes flew open as a wave of nausea hit him.

He sprang up out of bed and darted to the bathroom, where he emptied the contents of his stomach into the toilet. For a minute or so he was slumped over the hardware, feeling as though he was going to vomit his entire gut.

This has been happening for the past two days although for this entire week Taka felt like absolute shit. Toru, being the caring and loving boyfriend he is, was a broken record telling him that he’ll bring him to the doctor. Taka blew it off as a simple stomach flu or something, as he didn’t think it was that serious that he should get checked out.

Suddenly, he felt a hand rub his back gently, followed by a deep voice. “Babe...” Toru said, sounding extremely worried. “...do you want me to haul you to the doctor myself?”

“Toru...” Taka started, catching his breath in between pants. He turned his face away and mumbled, “...I’ll go after the concert.”

“Taka, let’s go _now_.” Toru said, sounding like a command. “You’ve been vomiting for two days too long! What if you’re sick?!”

“I’ll be fine.” Taka tried to reason. “As I said, I’ll go _after_ the concert. I promise.” he dropped a pout. Their concert was just three days away on the 30th of March.

Toru clicked his tongue as Taka knew his weakness. “Fine.” he succumbed. “The moment we get off that stage, I’m driving you to the nearest doctor.”

“Yes Sir.” Taka weakly said in a playful manner.

After they’d freshen up, the two got dressed and headed downstairs. Toru prepared breakfast (as he’d been doing this past week, given how wrecked Taka is in the mornings) while the vocalist sat in front of the TV in the living room and skipped through the channels aimlessly.

“Worried” wouldn’t be the right word to describe what Toru felt, he was downright _distressed._ Many times he was tempted to drag Taka to the doctor in his sleep, but he restrained himself. He silently prayed that Taka is right about it just being a pesky little illness and nothing to worry about.

“I really hope you’re right...” he mumbled to himself.

…

_March 30, 2017_

The Saitama Super Arena was filled with noise ―cheers, laughter, shouts―all rang out incessantly as excited fans waited for the concert to start. The stage was dimly lit, only golden lighting from above illuminated some parts of the audience.

Soon, these lights dimmed into darkness after which a lone white light shone from the centre of the stage. Four silhouettes could be seen, one on the drums which of course was Tomoya, one on the left and right both holding guitars which were Ryouta and Toru and Taka being the one in the middle.

A musical introduction was played, the faces of the band members still not seen due to the white light shining from them. After the introduction ended, the lights on the stage came on, at which Taka began singing “Bombs Away”.

…

The concert was an intense performance of the four.

Taka performed to the best of his abilities ―with his little body filled with adrenaline, he darted to and fro, jumped and danced, getting the crowd to rave in a frenzy. As if responding to the Arena, Taka let out a roaring shout, further setting off the crowd. The band then performed “Taking Off”, driving patrons into wild excitement.

A deafening sound rocked the whole area ―Ryouta’s heart-pounding bass mixing well with Toru’s melodic guitar. The two guitarists ran across the stage, jumping and occasionally head-banging to pump up the crowd even more.

Tomoya’s energetic drumming added to the enthusiasm and beautiful madness, some patrons moved to the beat of the drums, losing themselves in the music. The band rocked on like there was no tomorrow, their energies could be felt even in the darkest corner of the Arena.

In the last song ―“We Are”, things calmed down a bit, Taka’s voice slowly floated in the air and infected everyone to start singing. It became emotional, and as if they were responding, the audience raised their fists into the air, and swayed to the music and Taka’s voice.

And so, by the time the concert came to an end, and after they’ve performed “One Way Ticket” and “Kanzen Kankaku Dreamer” as the encore, the quartet headed to the front stage to bow as a thank you to their fans.

However, as Taka neared the extreme front, he felt a bit dizzy. As a matter of fact, throughout the concert, he wasn’t feeling a hundred percent. There were moments when he thought he was going to fall as he felt weak or fatigued, there were times when he broke out in cold sweat, there were times when thought he was going to black out.

And it seems, this time would be no exception.

He didn’t hear what the others were saying, nor did he try to, all he wanted was for them to get off the stage and head to the dressing room for some rest before leaving for home or wherever. He could tell that he was blacking out, so he made an attempt to get to Toru before he fell, before he lost consciousness. Using his mic, he called out saying, “Toru...” in a soft voice which echoed throughout the arena thanks to the equipment. But, he was a second too late. He was already on his way to the floor, darkness consuming him.

While Toru was conversing with the fans, he noticed that Taka was behaving strange. Normally, he’d bounce up to him and either flirt, say something or make some mischief that fans would scream at or find cute, but he stayed behind and seemed a little...off.

Not taking any chances, Toru abruptly cut his speech (not that it would have been long anyway) but the instant he’d done so, he heard Taka’s small voice, calling him ―

“Toru...”

―before hearing the mic resonance from hitting the floor and the thud of a body landing on the ground.

“Taka!” Toru shouted as he bolted for the vocalist. Holding him, Toru called out continuously, “Taka! Taka! Can you hear me?!” he pat his cheeks a little more than gentle, hoping to resuscitate him. But Taka was out cold.

Ryouta and Tomoya dashed to the wings to get someone to assist and another to alert the ambulance waiting outside the venue. A medic arrived, hoping to assess the situation.

The male medic and his associates gently turned Taka onto his back, to check if he had sustained any injury when he fell. When they saw that all was clear, they then checked his breathing, and found nothing out of the ordinary.

“Loosen his belt!” the male medic barked at his assistants. Almost on instinct, Toru undid Taka’s belt and pulled it through the hoops so quickly, the male medic looked at him in momentary surprise.

Refocusing back to his work, Male Medic raised Taka’s legs into the air, hoping to get his blood pumping back to his brain. This was a standard procedure for when someone fainted, since he didn’t know the cause of Taka’s collapse. Looking across to his other colleague, Male Medic got a reply from her:

“Fifty-five seconds.” the colleague said as though she could have read Male Medic’s mind.

Male Medic then looked to Toru, Tomoya and Ryouta, “We have to get him to the hospital.”

Soon, the paramedics arrived and were ushering Taka out of the arena and into the ambulance.

…

Toru, Ryouta and Tomoya along with their manager Goto Yoshitaka who they’ve dubbed “Gocchan” sat waiting patiently (well, in Toru’s case, he sat with his head in his hands with a scary aura seeping out of him). The atmosphere was filled with fear and tension as no one spoke, only hoping ― _praying_ that their vocalist would be alright. At one point, Gocchan got up and bought them something to drink, given that they had left right after Taka was taken. They needed some hydration.

“Here. Drink this.” the man said as he handed them the bottles of water. Toru looked at Gocchan as if saying, “I don’t need water” but the manager was adamant. “You need to hydrate yourselves. You’ve been rocking away for close to two hours.”

After hearing that reasoning, Toru reluctantly took the bottle, but that was when the doctor emerged from the double doors.

“Yamashita-san.” he said after he greeted the four. “I’d like to have a word with you in private.”

Toru felt his stomach flip, fretting that he was going to get bad news. He was scared, and mentally cursed himself for not hauling Taka to the doctor while he slept. If he had done that, then this wouldn’t have happened. Taka would be fine, Taka would be his usual bubbly self...Taka would be…

His train of thoughts ended when he felt a hand on his shoulder and one nudging him in his sides.

“Go on Toru-san,” Tomoya said, “I’m sure it’s nothing traumatic the doctor wants to tell you, right?”

“Yeah, remember we’re here for moral support!” Ryouta chirped.

Toru exhaled and felt much better. He then turned to Doctor Tachibana and nodded. He followed the man back to an office like space. Toru sat in the chair present and looked a bit fidgety. Although Ryouta and Tomoya tried to cheer him up, he still couldn’t help but fret. Taka would be alright...right?

“There’s no need for you to look so scared, Yamashita-san.” Tachibana-san said with a warm smile. “Moriuchi-san is fine.”

“Really?!” Toru flew up out of the chair in glee. But realizing what happened, he quickly sat back down and cleared his throat, “I meant, that’s great.”

The doctor laughed. “I was informed by the paramedics that you and Moriuchi-san are in an intimate relationship, is that right?”

“Yes.”

While Toru rode with Taka in the ambulance he was asked about his relationship with the vocalist and he answered truthfully. So of course they’d tell the doctor.

“The reason for him to be in this state is simple ―he’s pregnant.”

Toru’s jaw dropped through the floor at this statement. He couldn’t say a word, this news was all so sudden, and _definitely_ not what he expected. It was only just, what, four weeks ago that they’d fucked for the first time in weeks and now Taka’s pregnant? _What the fuck?_

Tachibana-san continued, “He’s four weeks along. Why he fainted was that he was performing and given his condition now, performing like that is a no-no.”

Toru stared at the doctor for the longest while as though he wasn’t speaking Japanese. He was so dumbstruck between cheering and gaping at the fact that he was going to be a father.

“Wait, hold on a minute.” Toru raised his hand in front of him. “Are you sure? _My_ Taka is a _male_.”

Tachibana-san hummed, realizing that Toru didn’t know what was going on. “Yamashita-san, Moriuchi-san is a carrier of the _f_ _ê_ _mea_ gene. This rare gene mutation allows some men to conceive and give birth to children.”

Toru stared.

And stared.

And stared some more.

“What the fuck?” he gave out, the doctor totally unperturbed by the man’s reaction, like he was expecting it.

“Yes, Yamashita-san.” he sighed. He then asked, “Is it safe to assume that you’re the father?”

“Ye-Yes...” he stuttered out, still shocked about the news. Toru ran a hand through his dyed red hair. This was just _unbelievable!_ While he’s been hearing about males giving birth, he usually brushes it off and focuses on his music. He _never_ in his _wildest dreams_ thought that Taka ―his precious, beloved _Taka_ would have been able to bear children. All because of a gene mutation? At this point, Toru didn’t know whether or not to thank the gods for this, because that would mean both he and Taka could have children of their own without adopting…

“Na, Doctor-san, tell me more about this femma gene.”

The doctor chuckled and shook his head, “I’ll be glad to and it’s called “fêmea”, not femma.”

...

Taka’s eyes fluttered open to greet the pristine white ceiling. He didn’t know how long he was out for, but he remembered collapsing on the stage. He let out a groan, “Our fans are probably going into hysterics right now.”

“Moriuchi-san,” Taka turned his head to look at the female nurse in the room. “How are you feeling now?” she asked.

“Not bad. I feel much better.”

“Good. You have visitors, do you wish to see them?”

“Yes!” he nearly shrieked. He knew those “visitors” included his band members, especially Toru. _Of course_ he’ll want to see them.

The nurse chuckled at his expressions, and exited the room. Less than a minute later, a doctor and Toru along with Gocchan, Ryouta and Tomoya entered with looks of relief on their faces.

“Toru…?” Taka said as he tried to get up.

“Taka,” Toru said as he darted over to the bedside and aided him up. Ryouta and Tomoya followed behind Gocchan who was behind the doctor. “How are you feeling?”

“Much better.” he replied.

“Mori-chan! We were so worried!” Ryouta exclaimed, standing on the opposite of the bed. “Don’t scare us like that again!” Beside him, Tomoya nodded vigorously.

Gocchan stood with folded arms, and said, “Next time, if you’re sick, tell someone, or rather, Toru. As Ryouta-kun said, we were all worried sick.”

“Heh, I thought I was fine.”

“So Doc-san, what’s the matter with Mori-chan?” Ryouta then asked, diverting the conversation to something else.

Toru and the doctor exchanged glances before the older man asked, “Is it okay for them to hear as well?” Toru nodded. He then turned to Taka, “Moriuchi-san, you’re pregnant.”

Gocchan stared as the colour from his face drained ―he looked as though he turned to stone.

Ryouta and Tomoya and looked at each other wondering if the doctor had hit his head.

Taka froze in shock. “I ―I’m pregnant?” he said in disbelief. “ _What the fuck?!”_ he continued, “I’m a _male!_ Can’t you _see_ that?”

“Moriuchi-san, you’re a carrier of the fêmea gene. It makes it possible for you to bear children.” the doctor said with a sigh. These celebrities were making his head hurt.

Taka looked like he was going to have a panic attack anytime soon. His body trembled as he took deep breaths, Toru had to try and calm him down. He knew, that this was something _beyond_ shocking and if _he_ flipped out, he couldn’t even imagine what Taka was going through at the moment. To be told that he was carrying a child all of a sudden would have left _anyone_ stupefied.

“No...” Taka started, but nothing else came out of his mouth. He knew of the rare gene mutation in _some_ males but he never expected to have fallen into the category. He _never_ thought that _he’d_ have it.

The doctor continued, “You’re four weeks pregnant, Moriuchi-san.”

“No!” Taka’s voice rose higher. “I can’t be pregnant! It’s not possible...It’s...” he trailed off as he saw the serious look on Toru and the doctor’s face. Tomoya had silently dragged Ryouta out of the room along with a stone-faced shell-shocked Gocchan as this seemed to be getting sensitive. He figured that the two should be left alone to talk things over with the doctor before they come back in.

Taka broke down in tears at this new revelation, Toru put his arms around him, holding Taka in a warm embrace. The small vocalist cried in Toru’s chest, his small hands gripping onto the guitarist. This was not how he expected things to go. It was supposed to have been a stomach flu or something... _not_ a baby growing inside of him.

He calmed a little when he felt Toru’s gentle hands rubbing his back to offer comfort. “It’s going to be okay, Taka. I’m here.”

It took a whole three minutes for Taka to calm down. Judging by Toru’s reaction alone earlier, the doctor could tell that this was totally unexpected. Add to that, they were performing at a concert not too long ago which means their minds were far from this.

“What are we going to do, Toru?” Taka sniffled.

“We’ll find a way.” Toru replied, when truly he was lost as well. While they did have it in their minds to adopt children one day, when they were in the right frame of mind. Add to that, they had the public to deal with. The media can be quite nasty, and Toru couldn’t imagine the backlash and revolting comments that they ―Taka especially― may face. He wouldn’t want that.

Doctor Tachibana placed a hand on Toru’s shoulder prompting the guitarist to look at him. “I’ll leave you two alone for the time being.”

And with that, Tachibana-san left the room, Toru still embracing his beloved.

…

About an hour later, Toru left a sleeping Taka, to join up with the others who were waiting outside. When they saw him, Ryouta and Tomoya fired off questions relentlessly.

“Oi, oi, slow down!” Toru hissed. “Jeez.”

“So...what’s going to happen now?” Tomoya asked, still fanning Gocchan in hopes of resuscitating the man. “I mean, hiding Taka from the public is going to one hell of a task. We sure as hell can’t keep him caged up at home when he starts showing.”

“We’ll figure that later. For now, I just want him to rest.”

“But who would’ve thought?” Ryouta joined in. “That Mori-chan has that femme gene thing. I’ve heard about it, but I never...” he trailed off as he didn’t know what to say.

Toru sighed upon hearing Ryouta call the name incorrect. But he was too lazy to correct the bassist. “Neither of us knew. Even Taka himself was shocked.”

“We could see that.” the two deadpanned.

“But the good about this is that I get to be an uncle!” Ryouta chirped. “I hope your baby turns out cute.”

“Ahh...I see little Toru’s future...” Tomoya cooed. “Sitting around a drum set, pounding the drums with his sticks, pumping up the crowd with his energetic beats...”

“No way! He’s going to be a bassist! Playing heart-pounding chords and riling up the crowd with his beautiful head-banging and ―”

“I think you two should stop.” Toru said with an eye twitch. “It’s embarrassing.”

But he was ignored by the two. They continued to chat, seeming to be planning out _his_ baby’s future. They argued about whether or not he’ll be a drummer or bassist, and at this point, Toru simply shut them up by saying he’ll be a vocalist like Taka.

“But, when did it happen? Weren’t we too busy to do _anything?_ How did you do _it_?” Tomoya asked, sounding a bit envious here.

Absent-mindedly, Toru said, “It happened on the island earlier this month. More than likely.”

“What island?” Ryouta asked, totally breaking the mood. “We didn’t leave Japan this month.”

Toru realized what he just did and thanked the heavens that Ryouta didn’t pick this up. Who knows? He’ll probably never eat from their kitchen again. But then again, that’d be a plus for them, right?

Tomoya placed a hand on Ryouta’s shoulder and shook his head. “There are different types of “islands”, dear Ryouta-kun. There’s ―”

“Tomoya.” Toru said, cutting the drummer off. He needn’t to continue the sentence because he got the message.

With a faint smile, Tomoya said to Ryouta, “Just know that there are different islands about, ne?”

Ryouta was not amused.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if Hiro is a little OOC, I don't follow his band so I don't really know what he's like. But I'll watch couple interviews and stuff to get his character right for subsequent chapters.  
> Enjoy!

Chapter 3

_“I’ll risk everything if it’s for you…”_

-One Ok Rock _“The Beginning”_

…

Toru left the hospital when Taka had fallen asleep, thankfully, he’d be discharged tomorrow. He decided to get some fresh clothes for the little vocalist and to return quickly as he didn’t want Taka to wake up and _not_ see him. Toru knew that this is the time when Taka will need him more than ever.

When he reached home, he grabbed the nearest pieces of clothing (he silently thanked Taka for being so meticulous in ordering his clothes) and dashed back out. As he drove back to the hospital, he pondered on where they’ll be going from here. He pulled over momentarily, gathering his thoughts. He was filled with joy upon knowing that he was going to be a father and Taka would be…the mother? Whatever the case, Taka would be carrying his baby. _His_ baby.

A blissful sigh escaped his lips as he couldn’t wait to welcome their little bundle into the world. But, his mind ran on Taka. He saw how distraught and shell-shocked the vocalist was, and wondered how Taka would respond to this. It was a fact that neither of them was ready to be parents, but truly, is _anyone_ ever?

He shook his head to rid the thoughts and drove off once again.

…

Taka’s eyes fluttered open, to greet an empty room.

Only the beeping from the machines could be heard which were nothing short of annoying. He wanted to see Toru, sitting there and watching him like the stalker he was. A chuckle escaped his lips at the thought, and that moment, his mind ran on the revelation he got earlier. He raked a hand through his curly hair, sighing in distress.

He was scared.

He couldn’t believe that he was going to be a parent —both him and Toru. He was afraid of what the future holds but more importantly, he was afraid that he wouldn’t be a good parent. Did he always want children? Yes, he did. But, not _right now._ He hadn’t the first clue of what to do expect, what to do… _nothing._ He then wondered how Toru felt upon receiving this news, but, he surmised, maybe Toru was probably bursting and jumping in joy like a little child right now.

His mind then trailed onto how their families will react upon hearing this news. He’s sure that they’ll be shocked, but then again, they may be glad about the addition. For sure, his mother would be screaming in joy.

On that note, he realized that in the coming months, dealing with the public will be difficult; he started to have a headache just by thinking about it. Wanting to take his mind off it, he glanced up at the clock, looking at the time.

He groaned.

It was just minutes after ten o’clock.

“That meant I only slept for an hour?”

A sigh escaped his lips, knowing that he’ll die of boredom soon. Ryouta and Tomoya won’t be able to enter since it’s past visiting hours, only Toru and he isn’t here at the moment.

As if on cue, Taka heard the door open and in came the guitarist. Toru wore an unreadable expression, leaving Taka to wonder what his thoughts were.

When Toru saw that Taka was up, it was then that a smile came onto his face. “Hey Babe.” He made his way to Taka’s bedside and placed a chaste kiss on his lips.

“Hey.” Taka replied, sitting up. “I thought I was going to die of boredom.”

Toru chuckled. “I’ll try my best to keep you entertained.”

“I wonder how you’ll do that without a guitar.” Taka laughed.

“I can try.” Toru shrugged. “You never know.”

“Right…”

After that, a moment of silence followed, as neither knew what to say. It was extremely awkward, as normally, they’d find _something_ to converse about. Toru looked fidgety and uneasy, while Taka fiddled with his nails.

Unable to bear the atmosphere any more, Toru started, “So, uh, it seems like we’re going to be parents, huh.” He sounded a bit stiff.

Taka raised an eyebrow at his behaviour. It was a fact that the guitarist wouldn’t speak like that around _him_ , so he asked with a twisted face, “Toru, are you constipated?”

“What? Where’d that come from?!” he nearly shrieked (as if he could do that with his deep voice.

“You’re talking weird.”

“Oh, sorry.” Toru replied with his head down. “It’s just that we’re suddenly told that we’ll be parents and I wanted to know what you felt about all this.”

“I’m scared.” Taka answered truthfully. Toru stiffened at his response. “I don’t know what to expect or if I’ll be a good parent, you know?” he gripped the white sheets and met Toru’s worried gaze. “What’s going to happen to the band?”

Toru leaned forwards and took hold of Taka’s hands. “I’ll _always_ be by your side. No matter what.” He gave his beloved vocalist a kiss. “We’re in this together and we’ll get through this. And we’ll be the world’s best parents.”

“But what about —”

“Don’t worry about it. As long as it’s for you, I’m prepared to take the risk.”

“But…but…”

“Ryouta and Tomoya are just as excited as we are. They were even arguing about whether or not our baby will be a drummer or bassist.”

Taka laughed at this. He could imagine their bickering faces and found it absolutely amusing. The two were comedic when they want to be.

“Since…” Taka started but stopped because of a yawn, “…we’re going to be best parents in the world; you better start thinking…” he yawned again, “…about some good names.” He rubbed his eyes as if trying to fight back the sleep that was threatening to take him over.

With a grin that stretched from ear to ear, Toru embraced Taka in a bear hug. They stayed like that a couple minutes, Toru loving the feel of Taka’s lithe body against his.

“I will.” He murmured into his ear. However, by this time, Taka had fallen asleep on Toru’s chest.

…

Taka got dressed quickly, excited that he’ll finally be heading back home and out of this hellhole. After he was done, a nurse led both he and Toru headed to the doctor’s office for Taka’s check-up. When everything was over and done with, Taka was free to leave, the vocalist practically bouncing as they made their way out of the building. Toru had never seen Taka this happy (well he has, but was just exaggerating right now) and smiled to himself.

As they reached the car, Toru could feel Taka’s happiness oozing out of him in waves.

“I’m finally going home!” Taka chirped as he buckled his seatbelt. “I thought I was gonna die!”

Toru chuckled as he turned the keys in the ignition, “Seriously, Taka? Aren’t you exaggerating a bit?”

“Of course not.” Taka huffed. He then turned his face to Toru and said, “Toru, I’m hungry.”

“Okay, where do you want to go?”

“That new Sushi place. I’ve always wanted to try it out.”

With a nod, Toru made a right turn at the stoplight, heading down the busy streets of Tokyo. Taka hummed a tune as he looked through the window, Toru kept his eyes focused on the road.

Within no time, they arrived at “Sushirama”, Taka bouncing out of the car, totally forgetting to put on some form of disguise. Toru followed him to the entrance and opened the door for him, like always.

“Thank you~!” Taka sang in a teasing manner. But the moment he stepped in and the scent of the dishes hit him, all colour from his face drained. He felt nauseous but not so much to actually throw up. Well, if he stayed there any longer he probably would. He pushed Toru out of the way and took deep breaths when outside.

“Babe, what’s wrong!?” Toru asked, wrapping an arm around Taka’s waist in an attempt to have him rest his weight on his body. He was alarmed, seeing how much the vocalist was shaking.

“I…” Taka started, sucking in breaths like a vacuum, “…feel sick. The sushi…stinks…”

Toru’s eyebrows furrowed. There was nothing wrong with the smell of the sushi. Hell, it smelt normal, like every sushi should. But seeing his lover in such a state, Toru quickly carried him back to the car and headed home.

…

…

“Man, I wanted to go to Taka-nii’s concert yesterday.” A bleached blond-haired young man mumbled as he landed in his couch. He held up his phone and scrolled, his face looking a bit tired. He was Moriuchi Hiroki, informally known as “Hiro”. He scrolled a bit aimlessly, hoping for something that’ll catch his eye. As he continued to scroll, he stumbled upon something that made him freak out. He sprang upwards, staring at the screen in utter and complete _shock._

There, before him was a picture of his older brother, Taka, sprawled out on his back, Toru kneeling by his side with one of his hands on Taka’s left cheek. He swiped to the right for more, only to encounter a short video.

It started out normal, with Taka and the others walking to the front stage to greet the fans and bow (like what they’ve always done). It seemed pretty normal, except, Hiroki noticed that Taka was lagging behind the others. Then, he saw Taka put his mic to his mouth and called out to Toru after which he collapsed to the floor. Toru and the other members rushed to his aid, Ryouta and Tomoya heading to the wings.

He swiped again to see another video, this time, paramedics were present, but for the life of Hiroki, he didn’t know what they were doing. He only saw Toru ripping Taka’s belt from his pants with astonishing speed (but then, Toru more than likely does this on a daily basis, so he’s gotten proficient) and the male medic hoisting Taka’s feet into the air.

But, whatever, Hiroki saw enough. “Taka-nii…”

While they may not be in contact as often due to their schedules, both Hiroki and Taka were close. And to see something like this happen to his big brother, Hiroki was close to losing his shit. Quickly, he searched his contacts for “Taka-nii” and almost dialled but remembered that he’s more than likely unable to answer. He then searched for Toru’s number, knowing that he’ll _know_ exactly what happened.

The phone rang twice before the guitarist picked up.

 _“Hello.”_  That deep voice was unmistakably Toru’s.

“Toru-san,” Hiroki started, “Is…Is…my brother a-alright?” he stuttered.

_“He’s fine.”_

“Then-then…this video…about him fainting…on the stage…”

Toru sighed. _“Yeah, it happened, but he’s fine now.”_

Hiroki furrowed his brows. The way in which Toru spoke indicated that there were more to this than just Taka fainting from possible exhaustion. After all, his brother is quite active on the stage and loves to “fly”.

“So what caused it?” he then asked.

 _“He’s…”_ Toru trailed off after which a pause followed. _“…we’ll tell you in person. This isn’t something to say over the phone.”_

“Oh.” Hiroki leaned backwards. “Okay.” He then asked, “You said he’s fine, so does that mean he’s with you currently? I wanna speak to him.”

 _“He’s…”_  Toru trailed off yet again, _“…recuperating.”_

Hiroki couldn’t take it any longer. Although inside he was tearing up, he calmly said, “Oh. That’s great.”

After exchanging goodbyes and ending the call, Hiroki took a quick shower then donned a simple jeans and a checkered shirt. He wore a cap and face mask to conceal himself from the public. Grabbing his wallet and putting on his sneakers, Hiroki headed out, his destination: Toru and Taka’s house.

…

...

Toru sighed and placed the phone back onto the counter.

While he knew how dangerous the internet was, he never expected for a video to be uploaded _already._ Especially one about Taka fainting. All this time, Toru thought that fans like to upload cute, and silly things about their favourite artistes, he’s never encountered one about something _sad_. But then again, he rarely uses social media, so he couldn’t really have an argument there.

He refocused to his task —preparing lunch. Since Taka couldn’t stand sushi anymore, and to prevent him from vomiting his entire stomach on the road, Toru brought him home quickly. The vocalist went upstairs and stayed in bed, trying to regain his composure.

He washed the rice and placed it into the water with boiling water, after which he prepared the vegetables while the chicken was marinating in the seasoning. Leaving the rice to cook, Toru headed up the stairs to check on how Taka was doing. He entered their bedroom, and found his beloved curled up underneath the sheets with his back facing the door.

“Taka?” he called softly. No answer. He walked over to the bed and found that he had fallen asleep. Taka looked so peaceful; Toru had to restrain himself to not pounce on the sleeping man.

He quickly returned downstairs, and sat in the sofa. He played music from his phone, until he ultimately went for his acoustic guitar and started to play some chords. He was like this for a couple minutes, when he heard his doorbell ringing _incessantly._

“I’m coming! Jeez!” he snapped. Whoever it was certainly didn’t have an ounce of patience in them. Swinging the door open, Toru found that the annoying bastard was none other than his lover’s little brother, Hiroki.

Toru gawked at him. “What are you doing here?”

“You said that whatever’s killing Taka-nii can’t be told over the phone. So, I came here.” Hiroki said with too much sass, reminding Toru of Taka.

 _It’s probably genetic._ He thought. But getting back to reality, he said, “Taka’s sleeping and I think he should be the one to tell you. You know, you’re close.”

Hiroki pouted like a kicked puppy.

Toru shook his head and opened the door wider prompting the younger male to enter. As if it was his house, Hiroki made his way to the sofa and plopped himself down while Toru headed to the kitchen to check the rice.

When he returned, Hiroki said, “Sorry, but I was scared to death.”

Toru didn’t say anything, as he knew just how much Hiroki loved Taka and vice-versa. If Toru didn’t know better, he would’ve thought that Hiroki was Taka’s child given how he gushes about him _all the damn time._ And it’s worse if they go a My First Story concert. Toru learnt the hard way to _never_ watch a concert with Taka. _Ever._

“I mean, it just _happened._ So I freaked out when I saw the picture, and when I saw the two videos, I guess I lost my shit.”

Toru chuckled. “At least you weren’t there.” He said. “I thought I was going to have heart failure when I saw him lying there. Unmoving.” He added, “I was _mortified_.”

“Who wouldn’t be?” Hiroki shrugged.

Toru took up his guitar and continued with his chord playing, Hiroki randomly humming. By this time, Toru had stopped playing the music from his phone as it was distracting to what he was doing. As Toru continued to play, Hiroki hummed, occasionally dropping a word or sentence here and there. Soon, Hiroki was singing, albeit random lines that made sense, Toru concentrating on playing his chords and melody.

As the two continued to get more and more immersed in their activity, they heard a voice drawl,

“Toru…”

Turning to look in the direction, Hiroki saw Taka, dressed in a shorts and t-shirt, and looking sleepy.

“Taka-nii!” he chirped as he launched for Taka.

“Hiro? What are you —” he broke off as he lost his footing and the two went down to the floor. A hiss escaped Taka’s lips; Toru flew from his seat and ripped Hiroki from his brother, aiding the latter to his feet.

“Are you alright?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. It wasn’t that much of a fall.” Taka replied with a smile.

“Toru-san, are you an ogre?” Hiroki said, rubbing his butt. Since Toru had basically _flung_ him away like a piece of paper.

“Yes. I’m Taka’s _beloved_ ogre.” He answered with a grin. Taka rolled his eyes at his antics.

“So what are you doing here?” Taka asked, changing the subject.

“I saw you fainting on stage.”

Hiroki didn’t need to go any further. Taka immediately knew that his brother came looking for answers. He knew Hiroki well, and plus, if he saw a video of Hiroki fainting, he’d be scouring every single possible source for answers as well.

“I asked Toru-san, but he said you should be the one to tell me. As a matter of fact, I called first and he said that “it isn’t something to tell over the phone”.” Hiroki deepened his voice to imitate Toru but it came off as funny.

“I…see…” Taka said, fidgeting. Although this was Hiroki, his precious little brother, he didn’t know _how_ to break the news to him. Usually, a perfect situation would pop up so as to not let it feel like a bomb just dropped. That’s what he felt in the hospital, and wouldn’t want Hiroki turning to stone like Gocchan did.

“So…?”

“It’s sensitive and…”

At this, Toru squeezed Taka’s shoulders before tending to the rice that was threatening to burn. Plus, he figured that he should leave the brothers alone for this one.

“And…?” Hiroki hated when people beat around the bush. But more so, Taka. It’s the first he’s seeing his brother behave like this, and wondered just how serious this “illness” or whatever is. “…if you don’t want to tell me, I’ll wait.”

Taka shook his head. “It’s just that I want to tell you but I don’t know how to.”

“Are you dying?” Hiroki asked, just guessing randomly.

“What? No.”

“Do you have cancer? Leukaemia?”

“Of course not! Where’d you get that idea?!”

“Well, given those tattoos, I wouldn’t be surprised.”

“Hiro…”

“Okay, do you have —”

“Hiro, I’m pregnant.”

“—lu…pus…?” Hiroki trailed off upon hearing Taka’s reply. He froze momentarily before asking, “What? Come again?”

Taka sighed. “I said, I’m pregnant.”

Hiroki sat there and stared. He didn’t believe when Taka said it first time, but hearing him say it again, this was not expected. Meanwhile, Taka wondered about his brother’s reaction.

“Ho-how?” he stammered out. “That shouldn’t be possible. You don’t have that gene.”

Taka’s eyebrows rose at this. “You know something _Hiroki?_ ”

Hiroki turned his face away. Taka doesn’t usually call him by his given name, but he does, Hiroki knew he was serious. “You remember that time when we went for our check-up and you came with me because I was too scared?”

“Yeah you were what, seven at the time.” Taka shrugged.

“Well, the doctor noticed something and sent the results to Mom and Dad. It said I have the fêmea gene. You didn’t.”

Taka whistled. “Hiro…” he paused a while to think. “Well,” he started up, “Either the doctor made a mistake with our results or my gene was dormant or some shit because, only those with that gene can have children right?”

“Yeah…” he said.

“Lighten up! You’re going to be an uncle!”

“I’m going to be an uncle. I’m actually going to be an uncle!” Hiroki perked up with a grin.

“Damn right!”

Hiroki then looked in the direction of the kitchen and shouted, “Toru-san, I call dibs on naming him!”

“No way!” Toru shouted back.

“His name shall be “Arata”!” he tapped his chin in thought, “No, “Hiroyuki”! Named after his oh-so awesome uncle!”  

There was silence before Hiroki and Taka saw Toru emerge from the kitchen with a knife in hand. His face was darkened, and there was a terrifying aura seeping out of his body.

“You want me to cut your tongue, right?”

“Toru-san, I was just joking. I need my tongue to sing.”

“Tsk, thought so.” Toru smirked and returned to the kitchen. Taka and Hiroki continued to chat and before they knew it, lunch was ready. The trio sat around the table and ate in joy, Hiroki teasing Toru constantly, the older male dishing out threats as often as Hiroki teased. Taka just sat there and laughed at them, both Toru and Hiroki’s faces were _hilarious._

By the time lunch was done and Taka washed up (he was insistent), he joined Hiroki and Toru in their random jamming, which turned out to be quite fun. Both Taka and Hiroki randomly sang, so most times, Toru has to stifle down his laughter to control his playing. The lines they sang don’t make sense, as Taka was thinking of one thing, and Hiroki was thinking of another. So, there was a clashing of ideas, and it was downright funny.

An hour later, Ryouta and Tomoya dropped by with Gocchan and everything went crazy from there. Hiroki laid it out that _he’ll_ be the one naming his nephew (despite Toru’s protests), Tomoya couldn’t care less, stating that as long as “Hiroyuki” turns out to be a drummer he’ll be satisfied. This would prompt Ryouta to argue that “Hiroyuki” will be a bassist and Gocchan would put in his bits saying that it’s more likely that “Hiroyuki” will be a vocalist because of Taka’s genes.

However, Toru nearly took their heads off, as the three newcomers were unknowingly calling his baby “Hiroyuki”.

“We don’t even know the baby’s gender yet!” he argued.

Everyone looked at Toru with a blank expression until Tomoya spoke up, “Obviously it’s a boy.”

“But we don’t know the amount either. What if Mori-chan is having twins?” Ryouta mused aloud. Taka, who had been ignoring them all this time, perked up and looked at the bassist incredulously.

“Or triplets?” Tomoya said, likewise Ryouta. “That way, we could get our drummer, bassist and vocalist.”

“Yeah, and I could name them “Hiroyuki”, “Hiroshi” and “Hiroya”.” Hiroki nodded with a smile on his face. “It’ll be perfect.”

Gocchan sighed at them. He pitied Toru and Taka as Ryouta, Tomoya and Hiroki doesn’t seem like they’ll be stopping anytime soon. They were _far_ too excited and they weren’t even the ones having a baby. He then shivered when he thought about when their turn came…

“I bet it’ll be frightening.” He muttered.

“Hmm? What was that Gocchan?” Taka asked.

“It’s —” the manager broke off when he looked up at the sight before him. Taka gripped Hiroki’s hair quite painfully, pulling his head back as though he wanted to sever his head from his neck. Toru sat in Ryouta’s back with his feet stretched out across Tomoya effectively pinning them down.

“I have to run.” Gocchan said with a smile. “Congratulations, Taka, Toru.” And with that, he left the house quickly, ignoring the screams and cries for help coming from Tomoya, Ryouta and even Hiroki who he doesn’t even know personally.

_“Gocchan!!”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

_“You are my angel…  
…I love you…”_

―One Ok Rock _“Wherever You Are”_

 

…

As the sun rose, its light seeped through the little spaces that the curtain provided, hitting a sleeping vocalist squarely in the face. With a groan, he turned his back and nuzzled into the chest of the person next to him. And as if on automatic, Toru’s arms snaked around Taka’s waist, pulling him even closer. Taka _loved_ to do this —cuddle with Toru in the mornings, and stay within his arm for hours (well, depending if they had anywhere to go that morning).

However, Taka suddenly felt nauseous, ruining the lovely moment. He sprang forwards in bed, gasping and taking in mouthfuls of air hoping to calm himself.

Toru’s eyes cracked open upon feeling the sudden jerk. He looked up and saw Taka sitting up in bed with a rather…frightened expression. He heaved and sucked in deep breaths rapidly as though he was struggling to breathe.

“Babe…? What’s —” he broke off, unable to continue asking his question. Clasping a hand over his mouth, Taka bolted from the bed, exiting the room and heading straight for the bathroom. Once again, he emptied the contents of his stomach into the toilet, however, this time it felt worse than the days before their concert. It seemed as though his body wanted him to bring up everything from yesterday, and this time, Taka really felt like he’ll throw up his organ.

Toru followed behind him and when he saw Taka, there was a tightening in his chest. The small vocalist looked like a mess ―sniffling and shaking, the colour gone from his face. Toru knelt by his side, rubbing his back gingerly. He didn’t say anything as he knew that nothing said would make a difference.

“Toru…” Taka gasped out as he leaned into his chest. “…it’s horrible. I feel like I’m going to throw up my stomach.”

“I’m sorry, Babe.” Toru said as he embraced Taka in a loving hug. “It’s ―” he broke off as Taka pushed him away to throw up again. Toru felt awful, as he knew that this was his fault, and he couldn’t do anything to help.

It took Taka a whole ten minutes to calm down and regain himself. Toru helped him up onto his feet, afterwards the vocalist freshened up. Taka crawled back into bed, as along with the morning sickness, he felt like shit. For some reason, he felt tired, and he hadn’t done anything…yet. He wondered if this was a part of being pregnant and made a mental note to ask his mother later on.

It was then that he realized that he’d need to tell his parents, _before_ he starts showing. He sighed, realizing that it may be more difficult as his father didn’t recognize his relationship with Toru. He didn’t hate Toru, but he claimed that Taka was just “confused”, probably interpreting “admiration” for “love”. And after spending so many years around Toru, he “thought” that he loves him.

On the flip side, Taka’s mother was, at first, a little disappointed, but after given enough time to think it through, she accepted their relationship with open arms. The reason for it was because “Toru had saved her son from doom”. She even teased them saying that they should hurry and get married in America so that Taka would be Yamashita Takahiro. Cute, isn’t it?

Taka sighed, “I can always tell Mom, but Dad...” He decided to forget about that for the moment, and tried to get some sleep.

…

Toru had gone into the kitchen to prepare breakfast. He stared at the open fridge for the longest while, not knowing what Taka can hold down from what he couldn’t. Yesterday, he ate everything and _kept_ it down, but lo and behold, this morning he was bringing _everything_ back up.

Toru raked a hand through his reddened locks, clueless as to what to do. With a defeated sigh, he headed up the stairs to Taka. He figured that he should know what he can eat from he can’t. When he entered, Toru saw his beloved lying on the bed with his back to the door. His steady breathing and still figure indicated to the guitarist that he was sleeping.

“Babe,” Toru started, as he gently shook Taka awake.

“Hnn?” Taka groaned out and looked over his shoulder. “What’s it?”

“What do you want for breakfast?” he asked. “Anything particular?”

Taka shook his head. “Just no fish. I get sick just thinking about sushi.”

“Alright.” He said as he gave him a peck on his forehead. Toru returned to the kitchen when he heard noises ―footsteps, rather. Chatter followed, and as the figures came into view, a small smile appeared on Toru’s face.

“Can’t you guys knock?” he said, folding his arms.

“Ah, Toru,” Tomoya laughed, “Have you forgotten that this is our _other_ house?” Of course, this was not true, but because the four were _so_ close, they often time slept over each other’s places as though they owned it. “Plus,” the drummer continued, “Who needs to knock when we got our own keys?”

Ryouta hummed in agreement as he took a seat around the kitchen island. He placed his elbows on the top and rested his chin on the back of his hand. “So where’s Mori-chan? Why isn’t he cooking?”

“He’s upstairs, sleeping.” Toru replied.

“Damn, I came here _just_ for his heavenly dishes, you know?” Tomoya grumbled, folding his arms like a dissatisfied child.

“Well, you’re _always_ free to _leave_.” Toru smirked. “Since, apparently, my dishes aren’t heavenly.”

Tomoya chuckled. “Come on, Toru,” the drummer started, “You _know_ there’s something _special_ about Taka-chan’s cooking.”

Toru couldn’t refute that.

“So what’s for breakfast, _Toru-nii-san_?” Ryouta asked playfully.

Toru sighed and slumped on the counter. “I don’t know. Frankly, I don’t want Taka to throw up anything, but at the moment, I don’t know what he can hold down from what he can’t.”

“Oh.” Tomoya said, exchanging a look with Ryouta. “Classic morning sickness, huh?”

“Yeah. He said he’ll eat anything except fish, but I’m worried that he’ll _still_ throw up regardless.”

“Why don’t you make some soup or something?” Tomoya suggested. “It’s healthy and I’m sure that he _won’t_ bring _that_ up.”

Toru looked at the drummer with incredulity. He highly doubts that Tomoya knows what he’s talking about, given the fact that he didn’t know anyone pregnant. Well, in the past, he knew Toru’s sister-in-law.

“Soups are appetizers. That’ll just make Mori-chan hungrier.” Ryouta shook his head in disagreement. “I mean, when I drink soup I get hungry, so imagine how Mori-chan will feel since he’s eating for…how much?”

Tomoya shrugged, “I don’t know, I just hope he’s having multiples. That way, I can get my drummer and you get your bassist.”

“Why don’t you start your _own_ family so you can get your _own_ drummer, Tomoya? Hmm?” Toru said, his dark aura seeping out of his body in waves. They’ve been on this topic since yesterday, and at the rate at which they were going, Toru wouldn’t be surprised if they somehow managed to jinx Taka.

“Maa, maa,” Tomoya waved off, “in due time.”

“Whatever,” Toru said as he rolled his eyes at them. He focused on breakfast, and prayed that there won’t be any other disturbances today. He knew he couldn’t manage having Hiro over as well, as the three will certainly drive him up the wall.

…

Taka woke up and stretched, and even though he slept, he still felt a bit fatigued. With a groan, he hopped out of bed and headed downstairs where he heard boisterous chatter.

“ _That’s why…”_ he heard an all too familiar voice said. He emphasized the words far too much and Taka wondered what the conversation was about. “…it’ll be _perfect_ if Mori-chan is having twins. _Everyone_ will be happy.”

Taka twitched at that statement. “What the fuck?” he mumbled to himself. Hurriedly, he made his way to the living room, where he saw Tomoya and Ryouta sitting in the sofa, with Toru in the kitchen.

“And tell me why _everyone_ would be happy if I had twins?” Taka asked in a rather scary tone of voice. In his eyes, twins are frightening, double trouble in _everything._

The two jumped in fright as they never expected to see him.

“Well,” Ryouta started, looking a bit fidgety. “I want a little bassist and Tomoya wants a lil’ drummer. So, if you had twins, we’ll both get what we want.” He grinned. “And Hiro could get to name at least one of the babies while Toru names the other. We all know how viciously those two are fighting for naming rights.”

Taka drew back at Ryouta’s audacity. “The fuck?” he placed a hand on his hips, standing akimbo. “If you want your little “bassist” and “drummer” go fuck someone then! Don’t drag me into this! What if you jinx me or something?!”

Toru’s laughter could be heard from the kitchen. “I told them something similar not too long ago.”

Tomoya shook his head and looked worried. “Taka-chan, using such language while pregnant is a no-no. Can’t have your little one come with your foul mouth, now can we?” he joked.

Ryouta chuckled until he erupted into full blown laughter. “What are you saying? It’s Mori-chan. I wouldn’t be surprised if their first word ranged from “fuck” to “bastard” or something obscene.” He clutched his abdomen as he doubled over with laughter.

“What?” Taka looked offended. He huffed and folded his arms as he took a seat in front of the drummer and crossed his legs. “So what of it?”

“Mori-chan, are you…” Ryouta started as he came out of his laughing fit. But when he saw Taka’s face, he trailed off, “…are ―are you mad?”

Taka glared at him. “Yes.”

Ryouta and Tomoya exchanged glances before Ryouta leaned over and whispered worriedly to Tomoya, “Wasn’t he fine _just_ a couple seconds ago? What’s happening? Why’s he so…so… _moody_?”

Tomoya nodded and leaned forwards, resting his elbows on his knees. The look on his face was serious, giving Ryouta the impression that he was a wise man. He said, “It’s the dreaded “mood swings”. It’s what friends and family of pregnant people fear the most.”

“No…” Ryouta gasped out, looking mortified. “Mori-chan was already a bit…” he discontinued his sentence for emphasis, “…imagine him in the coming months. Aren’t we all gonna _die_?” he raked a hand through his hair, seeming as though he was about to cry. “Toru sent us to an early grave, didn’t he?”

“Unfortunately, yes.” Tomoya nodded, calmly. “But, it’ll all be worth it at the end, right?”

Meanwhile, Taka didn’t like the fact that they were whispering all of a sudden, especially when they were stealing glances in his direction every now and then.

“What are you two talking about?” Taka asked as he got up out of his seat.

“No-no-nothing!” they stuttered out.

“Really now?” Taka placed a fist in his hand, and moved towards them a bit menacingly.

Tomoya acted quickly and shouted to Toru who was oblivious to what was happening. “I think you need help Toru! I’m coming to lend my assistance!” The drummer made his escape quickly, as he was always prone to get bullied by Taka. _And_ , he wouldn’t want to experience firsthand what it felt like being bullied by a pregnant Taka. Just thinking about it made him shiver.

Ryouta and Taka stared at the disappearing drummer in shock. Tomoya would _never_ talk like _that_ around _them_. They found it odd and out of character, but seeing the momentary shock that Taka was in, Ryouta used this chance to escape.

The bassist followed Tomoya into the kitchen, the two surrounding Toru as though they were running from something and decided to use him as a shield. Seeing this strange behaviour from the two, Toru raised an eyebrow.

“What are you doing?”

“We were about to get killed by your wife!” Tomoya said in a frantic whisper. “Do something about those mood swings, Toru! Go calm him down or something!”

 _“Huh?”_  Toru said, looking at Tomoya as though he was an idiot. “Isn’t it your fault you pissed him off? Plus, can’t you see that I’m ―”

“We’ll finish it!” Ryouta cut him off, pushing him out of the kitchen as well. “Just go!”

“And do what?!” Toru hissed. But, he was already half-way to the living room. However, as he neared the room, he heard sniffling. His eyes caught Taka, sitting in the sofa, wiping his eyes with his small hands. There was evidence of tears; Toru had to do a double take between the kitchen and Taka. Tomoya said Taka was going to kill them both, but seeing the vocalist now, it didn’t seem that way.

“Babe, why are you crying?” Toru asked as he sauntered his way over, holding down the urge to murder Ryouta and Tomoya. Toru threw a hand over Taka’s shoulder and pulled him into his chest.

“I think…” Taka said in between sniffs. “…I may not be a good parent after all.”

“Babe.” Toru started as he embraced Taka in a loving hug, stroking his curly black hair with it. “You won’t know whether or not you were a good parent until your child is all grown up.” He said in an attempt to cheer him up. “Where did you get that idea from, anyway?”

And so, Taka recounted the moments earlier with Tomoya and Ryouta. Toru dragged a hand over his face, realizing that Tomoya was actually right about the mood swings. And this was just the tip of the iceberg.

“Don’t ―don’t worry about it.” Toru said, in hopes of cheering him up. “They didn’t mean anything bad when they said it. You should know those two by now, right?”

Taka looked up at him with unchanging eyes, “Toru, you stuttered.”

“Well, that’s because I was trying to form my sentence properly!”

Taka hummed and leaned into Toru’s chest. With gentle strokes of his hair, Toru tried to comfort Taka, and after a few minutes, he was back to normal. Tomoya and Ryouta peered from the kitchen, heaving a sigh of relief that Toru just saved their lives.  

 …

Breakfast was… _eventful._

Toru, Ryouta and Tomoya could only sit and gape as Taka inhaled his food like air. What made it worse was that the little vocalist ate seconds and thirds. At this, the trio had to wonder if being pregnant would make someone eat _that much_. Taka’s appetite seemed to have tripled, it was now that Toru was really considering if Taka was pregnant with multiples.

“Mori-chan, aren’t you eating a bit too much?” Ryouta had asked out of concern.

Taka looked up, his left cheek puffed out as he chew. “No.” He replied after swallowing.

“When Yori-chan was pregnant, she didn’t eat this much, right Toru?” Ryouta asked the guitarist. “Yori-chan” here was Toru’s sister-in-law, her correct name being “Yoriko”.

“No, she didn’t.” Toru said.

Taka frowned, “You can’t compare me with Yori.” He stabbed his chopsticks onto the meat rather viciously as though expressing his anger without biting their heads off. “I’m me, and Yori is Yori. There’s a _huge_ difference between us, like ― _hmm, I don’t know_ ―gender!”

As if he could sense the impending danger, Toru quickly said, “You’re right. We were just wondering, you know?”

“I see someone’s crabby.” Ryouta mumbled softly.

“It seems he’s having multiples, alright.” Tomoya nodded as he placed a piece of meat in his mouth. He was responding to Ryouta, but he didn’t realize that his voice was a bit high. His statement somewhat changed the mood at the table. “My prayers have been answered.”

It was as though time froze. Three pairs of eyes locked onto the drummer, awaiting an explanation.

“Excuse me?” Taka said, raising an eyebrow. “Your prayers?”

“Yes, I stop by the Shrine every time I pass by.” Tomoya shamelessly said, adding in a hair flip for extra effect. It was as though he didn’t care for the repercussions that he’ll face.

“Oh? Is that so?” Taka said with a smile, however, the other three men could see that the smile was not one of joy. There was something dark beneath all that sparkle, and Tomoya made a mental note to avoid the vocalist in the coming days.

“I see.” Taka continued as he rose up out of his seat. Tomoya stiffened before he jumped upwards and out of his chair, bracing for Taka’s attack. However, the vocalist smiled faintly and headed into the kitchen with his plates.

“Damn, I thought you were a goner, Tomoya.” Ryouta sighed in relief. “It seems being pregnant makes him less aggressive.”

“Me too.” He nodded. “But isn’t that great? At least for a couple months, I can live a peaceful life, devoid of bullying from Taka-chan.”

Toru ignored them but he felt a chill run down his spine. He looked around for anything out of the ordinary, when suddenly, he saw Taka emerge from the kitchen with his hands around his back. Taka made his way to Toru before launching on an unsuspecting Tomoya.

“Taka-chan!” the drummer screeched. “What are you ―!” he broke off as Taka grabbed into his hair, pulling his head backwards. He fell forwards with Taka sitting in his back.

“I suggest you go back to that shrine and retract those prayers.” Taka hissed. “If you don’t, _I will end you._ ”

“Shit!” Ryouta exclaimed, clearly frightened. Toru hummed and glanced at their direction, but did nothing. It was actually somewhat funny, seeing Taka’s tiny figure sitting atop Tomoya’s back. If it weren’t for the fact that Taka had a vice like grip in Tomoya’s hair, Toru was pretty sure that the drummer would have thrown Taka off his back already.

 _But, you reap what you sow, Tomoya._ Toru thought with a chuckle.

When breakfast was over, Tomoya and Ryouta lingered for a couple hours before they left to expend their energy on baseball. That meant, Toru and Taka finally had some alone time together. _For the rest of the day._

…

Toru was sitting in the sofa while Taka hydrated himself in the kitchen. When the vocalist was done, he made his way to Toru and straddled him, surprising the guitarist. But Toru’s surprise lasted only a split second, as he lovingly wrapped his hands around Taka’s waist and pulled him closer.  

“Will you still love me even if I look like a whale?” Taka blurted out.

Toru doubled his lips to not burst out laughing. “You…You won’t look like a whale, Taka.” He replied, struggling to form the words properly.

“But pregnant people get huge, Toru. And I’m already small to begin with. Imagine how I’d look.”

Toru looked at Taka and shook his head. “So what?” he leaned forwards and gave Taka a kiss on those plump lips. “I don’t care.” He kissed him again, “You’ll be carrying my baby and that’s the only thing that matters to me.” He then added, “Plus, I think you’ll look cute and adorable while pregnant.”

A small smile graced Taka’s face, but sensing the blush arising on his cheeks, he hid his face in his hands. Toru chuckled at his cute reaction, and pulled the vocalist closer.

“I love you, Takahiro.” He murmured as he planted yet another kiss on the vocalist. “Whether or not you’ll look like a whale. Always keep that in mind.”

“I love you too, Toru.” Taka responded, returning the kiss.

Still, such a beautiful moment was about to get interrupted. Toru’s cellphone rang out, startling the two. Reaching for the device, the guitarist saw that it was his older brother ―Tsukihiko’s caller ID that came up. Quickly, he answered it, only to be greeted with a hysterical scream,

_“Toru! Is Taka alive!?”_

The guitarist had to pull the phone from his ears and put it on speaker, fretting for his ear drums. “Hello to you too, Yori-chan.”

_“Who cares about greetings?! Now tell me, is Taka okay?!”_

“Yes, I’m fine, Yori-chan.” Taka replied with a chuckle, seeing Toru’s expression.

_“Then why did you collapse on the stage?! And look like you were actually dead!? It’s all over the news!”_

“Ah…” he trailed off and looked to Toru. “…this one’s all yours.”

“Hey!” Toru retorted. “She asked _you_ not _me_.”

“But she’s your family, no? I was the one who told Hiro even though he asked _you._ ”

“Tsch,”

_“I’m waiting.”_

“Taka’s pregnant.” Toru swiftly said. Dragging this out wouldn’t end well, especially since it was _Yoriko_ on the line.

For a brief moment, there was silence on the other end of the call, making the couple wonder if Yoriko was still there or not. However, like prior, they were deafened by her screech,

_“Tsukki!! You’re gonna be an uncle! Taka’s pregnant!”_

Toru and Taka heard some shuffling sounds in the background which was followed by thundering footsteps. As they got louder, there was a crash and what seemed to be metal clattering before a deep voice, similarly to Toru’s, spoke into the phone:

 _“Toru.”_ Tsukihiko started. _“What took you so long? It’s about damn time! You’re twenty-eight, already! Twenty-eight!”_

“Tsukki-nii, you don’t need to remind me of my own age.” Toru deadpanned while Taka buried his face in Toru’s shoulder, snickering.

Tsukihiko scoffed. _“Well obviously.”_ Toru could literally see his big brother rolling his eyes here. _“Because it seemed like you weren’t planning on continuing the Yamashita family name!”_ the older male’s voice softened when he said, _“But anyway, congrats, Toru. Tell Taka as well for me.”_

“He’s right here. And the phone’s on speaker.”

 _“Oh! Well done Taka!”_ Tsukihiko chirped. He then chuckled, _“I wanna name my first nephew!”_

Taka roared with laughter. “Well, you’re third in line behind Toru and Hiro. Besides, we don’t even know the baby’s gender yet.”

 _“Damn.”_ Tsukihiko clicked his tongue at the mention that he was third in line of the naming process. _“Then, I call dibs on the second one, then.”_

The couple froze. “The second one? What?”

Tsukihiko laughed. _“Obviously Toru isn’t going to keep his dick still after this one, right?”_

Cue the coughing fits. Taka knew that Tsukihiko’s mouth didn’t have a filter, but he never expected _this_. As for Toru, he seemed…a bit too normal. Taka raised an eyebrow at this, _refusing_ to blow it off as just “Toru being used to his brother’s antics”.

“Toru, are you silently agreeing with him?”

“What? No.” he swiftly said to avoid Taka’s onslaught (when in reality, he was _considering_ it). After all, the vocalist was _still_ straddling him, with both his arms around his neck. One swift move and Taka could actually strangle him (not that he would but Toru didn’t want to take any chances).

_“Hey, hey, no need to be so defensive. The little one is going to eventually ask for a sibling, you know? That’s how it goes.”_

“That doesn’t mean we have to grant that wish.”

Tsukihiko howled out with laughter. _“Why else did you think Toru was born? I whined and begged for a sibling!”_

“Oh.” The couple could only voice out.

_“Yes, “Oh”. But, seriously, can’t I name him? I was the one who made Toru come into existence so you should use this to thank me…”_

“I’m the father, so naturally, _I’m_ the one who’s going to name our baby. Well, if Taka doesn’t say otherwise.” Toru said with Taka nodding beside him. “Plus, I didn’t name Reina, now did I?”

 _“Toru, Toru, Toru,”_ Tsukihiko started. _“Weren’t you on tour at the time? How could I_ possibly _interrupt your busy schedule like that?”_ He said playfully.

“We spoke over the phone. I could have told you then.”

 _“Ah, but, you_ didn’t _. Not my fault now is it? You could have said “Tsukki-nii, this is the name I suggest for your daughter” and I_ _would have taken it into consideration. But. You._ Didn’t. _”_

Taka doubled his lips to not burst out laughing. He wiped the tears from the corner of his eyes and mouthed to Toru ― “Tsukki is an asshole”.

Toru twitched. He should have known better, after all, this was Yamashita Tsukihiko, the King of Assholes (in Toru’s eyes at least). How could he have forgotten the years of teasing and torment he’s faced from his oh-so-loving brother?

“I’ll leave that decision in Taka’s hands.” Toru said with a smug look on his face. It’s sad that it wasn’t a video call.

 _“Hmm…ne, Taka how ―”_ Tsukihiko broke off when his wife shouted, _“Tsukki! Stop harassing them and get your ass over here!”._ With a sigh, the older Yamashita bade his farewell and ended the call.

Toru exhaled a sigh of relief as he lowered the phone. But Taka erupted with laughter at Toru’s distress. Tsukihiko was really something, this conversation really opened up what Taka’s previously thought of the man. The vocalist has met him numerous times before at family gatherings, but those times, it seemed like Yoriko (or whoever) had kept him on a leash.

“So, really, _who_ do you want to name our baby?” Toru asked, taking Taka out of his thoughts.

The vocalist cupped Toru’s face in his small hands and kissed him deeply before responding, “I wouldn’t want anyone else but you.” He gave the guitarist yet another kiss, “You can always laugh at everyone else who think that they have a chance.”

Toru’s eyes sparkled with mischief. “Isn’t that great.” He said in a deep baritone, sending chills down Taka’s spine.

Taka licked his lips as he slid his hands up Toru’s shirt. His eyes then softened as they looked at Toru. “Well…” he started with a purr. “…how about we continue where we left, ne?” At this, he successfully took off Toru’s shirt, and threw it to the floor.

Hearing Taka’s sultry voice turned Toru on, and he much obliged to the vocalist’s request.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

_"I'll always be here...  
...I won't go away and won't say never..." _

—One Ok Rock _"Clock Strikes"_

…

“Toru, are you sure about leaving Mori-chan at home by himself?” Ryouta asked with a worried tone. At the moment, they were on their way to _Amuse_ , as seeing how the fancam video of Taka fainting and getting carried away went viral (the lack of a better word), Gocchan and their management wanted to meet with them to discuss the band’s next step. Of course their manager had informed the personnel that Taka was pregnant and everyone sent their best regards, however, they couldn’t tell _that_ to the media…

...which meant, they had to find _something_ to calm the worrying masses. _And fast._

“Yeah, as long as we get this over with quickly.” Toru replied with a shrug. “He’s finally able to get some sleep in two weeks, I couldn’t wake him up.” As Toru said, as soon as the sun rises, Taka would be up and in the bathroom 一vomiting his gut out. It was extremely rough, and all Toru could do was just be by his side and offer whatever comfort he could.

“Heeh…” Ryouta hummed. “...Mori-chan’s got it rough.”

“Yeah.”

“I take it that if he wasn’t asleep you wouldn’t be here at the moment, right?” Tomoya said with a chuckle.

Toru snorted. “Of course not.”

And he strongly meant it. For the past two weeks, Taka went through hell as his morning sickness got more severe. The vocalist threw up right around the clock 一midday, evening, night time一he wasn’t able to keep _anything_ down. They had even planned to visit Taka’s mother to tell her the news but when Toru saw that his beloved couldn’t even make it to the kitchen without heaving, there’s no way he’d make it to Masako’s house.

Add to that, Taka was constantly complaining about feeling tired, bloated and cramps. But when he offered to bring him to the doctor, Taka quickly shot him down. Still, Toru has plans to haul his ass there, just after this meeting was over.

“Man, I just hope when we get back home he doesn’t attempt to take my head off.” Tomoya sighed.

“If he hasn’t all this time, why would he now?” Ryouta said. “If he wanted to seriously kill you, Mori-chan would have done it already.”

“Plus, Taka is too miserable and focused on trying to keep down his food.” Toru said with a nod.

“Thank God.” Tomoya sighed in relief. But in a split second, both he and Ryouta’s faces paled.

“But if Mori-chan’s miserable, won’t he make _everyone_ else miserable?” Ryouta asked while picking his thumbnail with his teeth in worry. “Right?”

“There’s nothing to worry about…” Toru started. “...at the moment.”

“Toru…” Tomoya started, “...Now you’ve made me scared.”

Soon they’ve made their way into the meeting room, where Gocchan and three others were seated. After greeting the four and taking their seats, the meeting began.

“As it is now, the masses are clamouring for an answer so we plan on releasing a statement simply saying that “Taka is recuperating from exhaustion”. Their producer 一Matsunaga-san said while rubbing his temples. “We can use that to buy some time to come up with something more solid and believable.”

The three band members looked at each other contemplatively.

“Since Taka is going to be out of it for…” Their publicist 一Ishida-san joined in. He trailed off seeming to be calculating something. “...let’s just estimate it at a year. We’re going to need something concrete that explains the long absence. Plus, we can’t just say he’s “sick” or “developed a condition” or anything too vague. The bastards will gnaw at it until _something_ comes to light.”

“That’s true,” Tomoya nodded. “But knowing Taka-chan, he’s still going to want to create music. I doubt he’d keep his ass still for nine months.”

“So couldn’t we like, not perform anything but still make songs?” Ryouta suggested. “Because if Mori-chan is _sad_ and _miserable_ then everyone else will be _sad and miserable._ ” he then added, “Music calms him down, you know?”

“But remember that the songwriting process can be tedious and stressful. In his current shape, we can’t have Taka do that.” Gocchan said.

Toru _deliberately_ cleared his throat loudly.

“And Toru wouldn’t allow him to either.” The manager added for drama, causing everyone in the room to break out in laughter.

“Back to the issue at hand,” the other man spoke up after the laughter died down. He was Murakami-san, their booking agent. “We’ll put out the statement that Taka is recuperating from severe exhaustion and as such, performance wise, the band will be on hiatus until he gets better.” He said, “That should quell them long enough for us to think up something that will explain the possible year-long absence.”

“It should.” Gocchan said. “Although knowing the media, they’ll fire off questions and if we’re not careful, we could end up ruining everything.”

“Right.”

The meeting continued in full swing, with the band members inputting their ideas and management trying to bend and twist these ideas into something believable. But throughout all this, Toru had a bad feeling. He wasn’t sick, but there was a queasy feeling creeping up and he wondered where it came from.

He hadn’t eaten anything out of the norm this morning, nor did he smoke. Hell, ever since he found out that Taka was pregnant, he hadn’t gotten a chance to. So, it led him to rack his brain for answers.

“Toru. Toru. _Toru!"_

His head snapped up at the mention of his name. “Huh?”

“Are you alright?” Tomoya asked. “You seem a bit…” he trailed off as he couldn’t find a word to describe Toru right now.

“I just…” Toru started, but trailed a little. “…It’s nothing.”

Gocchan leaned back in his chair with a smug look on his face. “You’re worried about Taka, that’s what.” Matsunaga-san and Ishida-san on both sides of him shook their heads with a chuckle.

“Am I that obvious?” the guitarist asked with a nervous smile.

“An open book.” Ishida-san nodded. “Here what, go to Taka. Goto-san will tell you what’s happening or we can phone.”

“Thank you.” And with that, it was the fastest any of them seen Toru exited a room.

…

…

Taka woke up and stretched. He looked around and saw no signs of Toru, but he noticed something that nearly made him scream in joy. The wretched, horrid feeling to throw up was nowhere to be found. However, he remembered that the urge to vomit could come at any time these days.

With a sigh, he dragged himself to the bathroom to freshen up. He brushed his teeth first as per usual before showering. After thirty or more minutes, Taka was finished and for the very first time in a week, he felt rejuvenated.

“Toru!” he shouted as he made his way downstairs. “Toru?” He called out again, heading into the kitchen. Seeing that there was a lack of Toru there, he made his way into the living room and found it empty as well.

“Where did he go?” Taka mumbled to himself, thinking that the house was empty because there are three places Toru _usually_ is 一in bed with him, in the kitchen or in the living room playing his guitar. Making his way to the couch, he spotted a little sticky note on the coffee table, and quickly snatched it up.

“Gone to Amuse for a meeting. Be back soon. Food in fridge, heat in microwave.” Taka read out loud. The vocalist hummed and crushed the paper within his palms before getting up and heading off to the kitchen.

But the moment he got up and took two steps, he suddenly felt dizzy. The world around him spun as the dark tunnel vision threatened to claim him. He swayed to and fro, reaching out for something to hold onto. He staggered into the island partially because he was unable to keep his footing and to prevent himself from falling. Taking deep breaths, he hunched slightly over the island, hoping to recover from whatever this was.

Taka slid down onto the chairs present and given some seconds, he felt a bit better.

“What the hell was that?!” he breathed out in shock. He made an attempt to stand up, but he thought to himself that it’ll be best if he phoned Toru to get his ass back here. Rummaging his pockets for his phone, he remembered that he left it on his bed. _Upstairs._

“Fuck.” he groaned out as he dragged a hand over his face. “What am I going to do?”

But seeing that he needed to get to his phone, Taka lolled his head backwards and took deep breaths. Whenever he was about to go on stage, he'd usually do this to calm his nerves, so hopefully, this exercise could do  _something_ at the moment. After a couple minutes, Taka felt back to normal. Slowly, he got up, thinking that maybe if he stood too quickly, that would bring back the dizziness and faint feeling. However, Taka immediately saw spots in his vision, which was followed by intense dizziness. “Fuck…” he groaned out as he reached for the island yet again. However, in that moment, his hand missed due to a misjudgement of the distance and he went crashing to the floor.

There, the dizziness seemed to have disappeared, but his vision darkened, seeming as though he was in a dark tunnel like prior. He broke out in cold sweat, and he panted heavily, gasping for air. His body lost all its strength as Taka found it difficult to get up.

“Toru…” he said as he felt himself losing consciousness. He silently hoped that wherever Toru was he’d hear him and come running home.

…

…

Hiroki hummed a tune as he looked out the window at the passing buildings. He was in a chartered taxi, heading to his beloved “Taka-nii”. He hadn’t seen him for a whole two weeks (due to rehearsals and other band stuff), although he called and messaged when he could, he would rather see his brother face-to-face.

Within minutes, he arrived, but frowned as he reached the door. He doesn’t have a key. He then made a mental note to take Taka’s and make a duplicate 一 _or duplicates, just in case_ 一so he can enter freely.

Hiroki rang the bell and waited.

And waited.

And waited some more.

Fed up, he pressed the doorbell incessantly, but there was still no answer. “Are they not home?” he mumbled angrily as he whipped out his phone. He searched for Taka-nii and called, only to have the device ring until it reached the voicemail.

“Shit!” he hissed as he searched for Toru’s name. “ _He_ better answer me.” After two rings, the guitarist picked up.

_“Hello, Hiro. What’s up?”_

“Where are you? You guys aren’t home?”

 _“I’m not. But Taka is supposed to be.”_ Toru replied. _“What’s the matter?”_

“I’ve been ringing the doorbell and no one’s answering. I’ve tried calling but Taka-nii isn’t answering his phone either.”

Toru sighed. _“Maybe he’s just asleep. Wait fifteen minutes, I’ll soon be there.”_

Hiroki scoffed. “I can’t believe you left him all alone at home.”

_“You little bastard. I had a meeting.”_

“Whatever. Just hurry up. I don’t want the cake to melt under this heat. _And_ I look suspicious standing by your door.”

_“Don’t rush me brat. I’m already breaking the speed limit.”_

The call then ended, but Hiroki was growing impatient by the second. Although Toru said that Taka could possibly be asleep, he couldn’t help but get a bad feeling from this. _If_ Taka was asleep, he should have heard his phone ringing. Hiroki knows exactly how loud and obnoxious Taka’s ringtone is — _Linkin Park’s “Faint” to be exact_ —and he doubts that his big brother actually puts the damn thing on silent when going to bed.

And besides, it’s minutes after one o’clock; any normal human being _should_ be awake by now. “Hurry and get your ass here, Toru-san.”

Meanwhile, Toru nearly went mad.

Having that conversation with Hiroki made him feel even worse. He prayed that they were all overreacting and that maybe Taka simply went out for a walk or something and not that something actually happened to him.

Toru doubt that he’d forgive himself if something did.

So, as he told the young vocalist earlier, Toru actually was driving beyond the speed limit. Before he knew it, he was pulling up in the driveway, meeting the angry yet worried gaze of Hiroki.

Wordlessly, he whipped out his keys and opened the door. The two dashed in, calling out Taka’s name in distress. Making it past the living room, Hiroki walked past the kitchen but that was when he saw Taka.

 _“Taka-nii!!!!”_ Hiroki screeched as he dropped to his knees. “Taka-nii! Can you hear me?!”

“Hi...Hiro…?” Taka croaked out as his eyes fluttered open.

Toru had followed Hiroki’s voice and stumbled upon a scene that he thought he’d never see again. Taka was lying on the floor on his sides, Hiroki trying to hold him up. The colour drained from his face but he quickly went into action.

Toru took out his phone and called an ambulance knowing full well not to jostle Taka since they didn’t know the cause of his fainting. When he was finished with the call, he knelt by his lover’s side.

“Taka...can you hear me?” Toru whispered.

“Toru…” he started weakly, but as soon as he said this, he lost consciousness. 

...

...

After Taka was taken, both Hiroki and Toru were in the waiting area and of course, both men were antsy. Toru paced around with a frightening aura seeping out of him, Hiroki sat with his chin rested on top of his interlocked fingers. He stared out ahead of him, scaring the people who were in that general direction. Unlike Toru, he was still and didn’t move an inch however, his face looked _extremely_ pensive. Toru had caught a glimpse of his face and never thought he’d see the day when Hiroki had such an _expression_.

“Yamashita-san?”

Both immediately looked at the source of the voice like starving animals that finally found a prey. The nurse yelped back in shock, and wondered just what kind of people the doctor’s patient was mixed up with.

“Yes?”

“Could you come with me for a second? Doctor Machida would like to see you.”

Hiroki stood up and without waiting for the nurse to ask, he spoke, “My Taka-nii is your patient. I’m coming too whether you want me to or not. And I’m sure that Toru-san wouldn’t mind either.”

The nurse looked at Toru and the redhead nodded. He didn’t plan on leaving Hiroki here either way. He knew how close Taka and Hiroki were after all.

“Alright. Follow me.”

They did just that and the nurse led them to an office at the end of the hallway. Doctor Machida was already present; his eyes were focusing on the papers before him. When the rock stars were settled down, he introduced himself,

“I’m Machida Mikuni, Moriuchi-san’s obstetrician.” His voice had sounded pretty friendly here.

“Nice to meet you.” Toru and Hiroki said in a strange unison.

“Let’s get down to business.” Mikuni started. “Moriuchi-san is perfectly fine. The reason —”

“Then why was he on the _floor?!”_ Hiroki nearly screeched, interrupting the doctor midway. “We found him sprawled out on the floor. _The fucking floor!”_

Mikuni jumped back in fright, eyes widened as they looked at Hiroki. He clutched the fabric at his chest, seeming to be calming down his racing heart. After regaining his composure he said to them, “He passed out due to a number of factors.”

“Which are…?”

“Can you two just let me finish?” Mikuni had to ask. Obviously, they wouldn’t know what caused Taka to faint but they seem like they couldn’t keep their mouths shut for a second. “The major factor is that Moriuchi-san is having twins.” He then added with a smile, “Congratulations Yamashita-san.”

Silence hung in the air for a couple seconds. Toru’s jaws dropped through the floor while Hiroki stared wide-eyed at the smiling doctor. The two then looked at each other in utter and complete shock, neither believing what the doctor just said. However, seeing how shell-shocked they were, Mikuni held off his explanation, letting the news soak in first.  

The doctor knew that finding out that one’s partner is having twins is a little overwhelming, especially if the pregnancy is unexpected.

Recovering first, Hiroki spoke, “Could you run that by us again?” he asked. “Did you say that Taka-nii is having _twins_?”

“Yes.” Mikuni nodded. He took this time to continue his explanation from before, “Which explains everything. In a twin pregnancy —or multiples for that matter—blood vessels are far more relaxed and widened due to the hormones, which lowers blood pressure bringing on dizzy spells than in a singleton.”

“Oh.”

But throughout all this, Toru hasn’t said a word. He was still shocked that Taka was carrying twins and really, he found it _hard_ to believe. First, never in his wildest dreams would he have thought that Taka would be able to carry a child and now he's hearing that he's going to be a father of twins. At this moment Toru was close to tearing up with joy, but he kept his tear ducts under control. However, with that realization came something else.

"Toru-san, why are you so silent?" Hiroki asked, taking the guitarist out his thoughts.

"I just realized that I have to search for a new drummer after this."

Hiroki burst out laughing ignoring the confused look on the doctor’s face. Taka had told him about Tomoya and his “prayers” and he had heard the entire story from Ryouta. “Tomo-san is so dead!”

“Maybe I can talk Taka out of killing Tomoya somehow.” Toru groaned out. "Although it's going to be next to impossible."

Mikuni cleared his throat to get back their attention. "Let's get back on track shall we?" 

"Sorry." Both uttered out realizing that they were deviating from the subject and ignoring the doctor.

“Yamashita-san, your job is going to get even more tedious as the weeks go by. Moriuchi-san is going to need all the support that not only you Yamashita-san and Moriuchi-san, but what friends and family can offer. He’s going to go through rough times and motivation is going to be needed. _Serious motivation._ ”

Toru and Hiroki nodded.

“His mood swings are going to become common —he’s going to be extremely moody, prone to tears often and feeling mentally unstable due to his emotions being all over the place.”

“We’re going to die.” Hiroki groaned out. “We’re seriously going to die.”

Mikuni chuckled. “Don’t be like that, it won’t last forever.”

Toru and Hiroki twisted their faces as they looked at Mikuni. _This bastard..._ “You have no idea who Taka is.”

Mikuni laughed. “Morning sickness in general abates around twelve or fourteen weeks. So there’s no need to be so dramatic. The world isn’t ending.”

“Ours is.” The two grumbled.

“Ahh…” Mikuni nodded, in total understanding of what they meant. “But let’s continue, shall we?”

 ...

...

Taka finally woke up to the sound of machines beeping _again._  He let out a sigh, upon remembering what happened earlier.

“Moriuchi-san, you’re up.” A voice said, taking him out of his thoughts.

“Hello.” He greeted the nurse present. He hadn’t even noticed that she was standing so close to his bed.

“How are you feeling?” she asked.

“I’m fine.”

“Good.” She beamed. “The doctor will be with you shortly.”

“Hai.”

And she was right. Within minutes of her exiting the room, in came Mikuni along with Toru and Hiroki.

“Taka-nii!” came the screech from Hiroki’s mouth as he dashed to the bedside. “You gave me a heart attack!”

“Ah, sorry.” Taka said while rubbing his little brother’s back. “Wasn’t intentional.”

Toru peeled Hiroki off Taka although the bleached-blond haired vocalist was protesting. Mikuni laughed at their interactions before he set off to work. At this point, Hiroki left the room to give the couple some privacy as he didn’t want to be _too_ intrusive. Mikuni told Taka the reason for his fainting which was due to the high levels of hCG a certain type of hormone found in pregnant people and his blood pressure dropping below normal. However, he didn’t tell the vocalist that he was having twins right off the bat. He saved that for later.

“Hoo…” Taka heaved a relief when the doctor was finished. His hands subconsciously curled around his stomach, “Thank God the baby is safe.”

“About that Moriuchi-san…” Mikuni said, giving Taka the chills. The vocalist looked across to Toru in hopes that he wasn’t getting bad news. “…you’re having twins.”

Taka stared at the doctor for what seemed like an eternity. He didn’t blink, he didn’t flinch, nothing. He just stared at the man as though he had turned to stone.

“Excuse me… _what?”_ He finally said when everything registered. “Did you say I’m having _twins?_ ” Mikuni nodded. Taka looked down on his stomach. “That can’t be right.”

“Why not?”

“Neither of our families have twins.”

Mikuni smiled. “There’s a first time for everything.”

“But I didn’t want twins!” Taka shouted in rage, causing Toru and Mikuni to jump in fright. “I didn’t…” his voice softened here as the tears streamed down his cheeks. “I didn’t…”

“Babe…” Toru said trying to comfort him.

“Don’t fucking touch me! This is all your fault, you asshole!” Taka barked. “If it weren’t for you and your damn stamina and your d—!” he broke off upon realizing that he was screaming at the top of his lungs and the people passing by outside could hear him. “This is your fault, Toru.” He sobbed as he turned his back to them.

“Well, I’m not the one who roughly pushed me down on the bed, mounted himself on my dick and rode me like a horse, now am I?” Toru quipped.

Taka’s face turned redder than a tomato. "Humph! But you didn't tell me stop either way! And-and you pinned me down afterwards!"

"But  _you_ wrapped _your_ legs around me and kept me there! Even if I wanted to move, I couldn't because _you_ held me in place!" Toru countered. "Plus, weren't  _you_ the one who said "Darling, fuck me like —"!"

“Excuse me...the world doesn't need to know the details of your sordid sex life.” Mikuni said as things were getting too far... "I'll leave you two to talk things over _without_ screaming at each other."

When the doctor left, Toru took a deep breath in, before exhaling and facing Taka. “Babe,” He started in that deep baritone of his. Taka visibly shivered hearing his lover’s voice, but he wouldn’t give in. “Think of it as a double blessing. Hiro was extremely happy when he heard, you know?”

“Of course he’d be happy.” Taka quipped. “He wanted me to have triplets. The greedy brat.” he rolled his eyes.

Toru doubled his lips to not burst out in laughter. But seeing Taka slowly coming around, Toru took swift action. He leaned over Taka and whispered in his ear, “You say it’s _solely_ my fault, but that’s not quite right.”

Taka immediately turned onto his back, and looked up into Toru’s half-lidded gaze. “Of course it is.”

“Hmm…” Toru hummed and leaned over. “...if you weren’t so _tempting_ …” The guitarist said in a sultry tone. He placed both his hands on either side of Taka and leaned down so close that their foreheads were touching. “If you hadn’t been so _sexy…_ ” his hand slid underneath the sheets and made their way beneath Taka’s garb, trailing upwards Taka’s inner thighs.

Taka shivered at the contact, the guitarist continuing. He nipped on Taka’s ear after which Toru trailed his tongue down his neck earning a gasp from the little vocalist. As Toru continued to stimulate his body, Taka let out pleasurable moans, his small hands curling around Toru’s arms half of him wanted to push him away but another half wanted more of Toru.

“Toru…” Taka gasped out. “We’re in a hospital...We can’t…”

“Don’t worry 一” Toru broke off as he heard the door slid open.

The two looked at the doctor who walked with the nurse from before. Mikuni's shoulders slumped a bit, while the nurse shook her head as she saw the two's positions. Mikuni shook his head in disbelief, but if they could scream their escapades so loudly earlier on, then it's possible that they'd actually do it here. 

"Sorry to interrupt," Mikuni started, which in fact, he wasn't sorry at all. He was just surprised that he had to stumble upon that. He made his way to the couple and said, "Moriuchi-san, since you're in good health, you'll be discharged soon. However, I'll need to see you both in my office, alright?"

Taka nodded, while Toru responded begrudgingly. 

 

...

...

After everything was done, and after meeting with Mikuni (in which Taka nearly killed Toru upon hearing the manner of things he'll go though); on the way back, Taka didn’t speak to anyone, instead, he kept his eyes out the window. Toru wondered if he was silently still angry, or his mind was just elsewhere at the moment. But, judging by his reactions earlier, the former would be the best bet. However, when they passed a certain plaza, Taka jumped in his seat. 

“Toru!” Taka suddenly said, startling both Hiroki and Toru, the guitarist slamming on the brakes.

“Shit, Taka.” Toru said. “Don’t scare me like that!”

Taka looked at him without care. “I need to buy something.”

“What?”

“I’ll be back.” Taka hopped out of the car and made his way quickly towards the store ignoring Toru's question. Toru and Hiroki found it strange that Taka was heading into a sports store and couldn’t, for the life of them, deduce what the vocalist could possibly want in there. Within a couple minutes, Taka emerged out of the store nearly sprinting as people swarmed him with paper and pens for autographs. Toru face palmed as due to them rushing, neither had brought any form of disguise. When Taka was near to the car, Toru opened the door so that he could hop in quickly, the moment he'd done so, Toru sped off, losing the horde of wildcats in the distance. 

When they reached home, Ryouta and Tomoya were already present, awaiting their return.

“Mori-chan! You’re alright!” Ryouta chirped. “We were so worried about you!”

“I’m fine, Ryouta.” Taka responded with a smile. But then his eyes landed on a worried Tomoya.

“Taka-chan…” the drummer started. "What happened?"

“Tomoya…” he started. “...there’s no need to worry.” he ruffled the drummer’s hair along with it.

“Okay.” he nodded like a child being comforted by his mother.

“However,” Taka voice darkened at this, causing everyone to shiver. The small vocalist took out a baseball bat from the bag and grinned. Toru and Hiroki's eyebrows rose, realizing that the bat was what he purchased in the store. But then again, Taka doesn't do sports, so why would he buy  _that_? 

“Taka-chan, what are you doing with that bat?” Tomoya asked.

“It’s for you.” he smiled.

“Aww...thank 一”

“Tomo-san, duck!” Hiroki screeched, seeing his big brother's posture, he could clearly tell what Taka was planning on doing with the bat. Tomoya ducked in time to avoid Taka’s swing, aimed at his head.

“Taka-chan?!” the drummer shrieked as he scurried away, taking refuge behind the sofa. Ryouta was panicking in the background with Hiroki, Toru was too frightened at the sudden act to even move. 

“You…” Taka snarled. “...You jinxed me with those prayers of yours.”

“I didn’t jinx 一!” he broke off as it registered. “You...you’re having twins?!” he gasped out. "Or is it triplets?"

“Twins, you fucker! Now die!”

“Mori-chan, calm down!” Ryouta shouted, finally coming out his daze and grabbed the bat, halting Taka’s advancements. Toru came up beside him and quickly scooped him up off his feet, holding him bridal style.

“Toru, put me down!” he hissed. 

“No.” he curtly responded. “You can’t be running around like that, _Takahiro_.”

Taka squirmed in his arms. “But 一”

“But nothing, Babe.” Toru said, sternly. “Now, you’re going to rest.”

 _“Toru!”_ Taka whined and looked like he was about to scratch Toru's face like a vicious cat.

"Taka-nii! I brought a strawberry cake for you!" Hiroki then pitched in. 

"Really?!" Taka's mood seemed to done a 180, as just a minute a go, he was hellbent on murdering Tomoya, but with Hiroki mentioning strawberries left him beaming like light. 

"Yes, it's in the fridge."

Without hitch, Taka hopped out of Toru's arms, ignored a cowering Tomoya and swung open the fridge's door. When he spotted the pastry, his eyes sparkled with delight and he quickly took up a plate, fork and knife. However, as Taka took a bite of the slice that he cut, a strong wave of nausea overcame him, leaving him dashing towards the bathroom. 

After a lengthy time of throwing up in the bathroom, Taka finally emerged, and although he washed his face and freshened up and whatever, he  _still_ looked like shit. Ryouta and Tomoya looked lost at this event, being that Taka absolutely  _loved_ strawberries. Why were they making him sick now?

"Mori-chan...?" Ryouta started, but Taka only shook his head and walked straight into Toru's chest. There, he broke down in tears, Toru trying his best to console him. 

"I can't stand strawberries anymore." he sobbed. "What am I going to do?"

"It's going to be fine, Taka-chan." Tomoya said, rubbing his back as well. "Just give it some time, ne?"

Toru chuckled inwardly, seeing how Tomoya was a pretty brave fellow. Not too long ago his skull was almost smashed by a hormonal Taka, yet he's here offering encouragement. How cute.

"But I love strawberries..." he mumbled.

 "We know, we know." the four men gave out. Without having anything more to say, Ryouta, Tomoya and Hiroki headed downstairs while Toru carried a half-asleep Taka to their bedroom. 

And as such, the rest of the day passed with Taka sleeping like a log and the others chatting idly in the living room. It came to a point, however, when Hiroki brought up the whole "telling Papa Moriuchi about the pregnancy" discussion, and neither of the band members knew what to do. Taka's father didn't hate either of them, but the problem he had was that Taka had fallen in love —and was in an intimate relationship— with another man. So, to tell him that Taka was pregnant would be an herculean task indeed. 

And it wouldn't make sense to hide it from the man either because, there are many ways he'd be able to find out. Just turning up at their house one day out of the blue is simple enough. 

"I don't know," Toru shrugged. "We planned on telling Masako-san first, then him..."

"Hmm..." Hiroki hummed. "That's not a bad idea. Telling Mom first would boost his spirit a little bit."

"Well, when we get to that bridge we'll know how to cross it." Ryouta said. "Makes no sense we worry about it now."

"Right..."

"So what's for dinner, Toru-nii-san?" Ryouta then asked playfully to change the heavy atmosphere. 

"Gotta to go ask Taka." the guitarist said as he got up and headed for the stairs. 

...

...

After dinner and everyone left (even though Hiroki wanted to stay), Taka and Toru crawled into their beds, and within a couple minutes, Taka was out cold. Toru was just left there to enjoy the warmth of his beloved on his chest, drinking the sight of how his green and black hair had mad curls around his nape and forehead, stopping a little above his ears. It emphasized his creamy skin, and with the moonlight sneaking in through the cracks of the curtain, Toru was reminded of a pretty porcelain doll. Toru was completely mesmerized by Taka's beauty. 

_Sleeping Beauty._

Yes, that's what Taka was at the moment. His wonderful Sleeping Beauty. 

As he gazed up at the ceiling, Toru remembered the day's events and it had been frightening and eventful, with Taka ending up at the hospital  _again_ to him finding out that they were having twins to Taka trying to kill Tomoya with a baseball bat. But the thing — _or things, rather_ _—_ that stood out for him was what Mikuni told him. Since Taka is having twins, his symptoms are going to be worse than if he was carrying one child, which means, Taka is going to be moody and miserable as fuck. And, as Taka gets bigger, the less things he'd be able to do, and when that happens...all hell breaks loose. Toru could already feel the grey hairs growing and Taka was _just six weeks_.

The other was that its highly likely that Taka wasn't going to carry to the babies to full term because twins — _multiples for that matter_  —always come early. And the drama that comes with that...Toru had never seen Taka so sad and distraught before. He was downright  _scared_ but luckily, Mikuni was quick to the rescue. They have a rocky road ahead of them, but, as long as he's around, Toru is going to make sure that his precious vocalist pulls through without worry. 

"Don't worry Taka," Toru murmured as he kissed his temples. "I'll always be by your side."

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're back!
> 
> In this chapter, some things were said, and we hope that no one feels offended because we don't mean it, the characters sure as hell don't...it's fiction. 
> 
> Enjoy!

Chapter 6

_“So this is heartache?”_

—One Ok Rock, _“Heartache”_

…

When Hiroki reached home, he sank in his sofa and heaved a sigh. He raked a hand through his bleached hair, and looked up at the ceiling. How terrified he was when he entered the house with Toru and saw Taka lying on the floor. It was then that he could sympathize with Toru. If Hiroki had been there when he had first collapsed on stage, Lord knows he’d probably have had a heart attack.

“Man, that must’ve been frightening.” He sighed as he raked a hand through his hair. But, a good thing came out of this —he was going to be an uncle, and to twins no less. When the doctor told him and Toru that his big brother was pregnant with twins, after the shock subsided, Hiroki could have sworn that he was happier than Toru (well, it may be an over-exaggeration).

Once again, he won’t be seeing Taka as often as he would like because his band will be releasing their fifth album — _All Lead Tracks_ — in July and it was already April.

“Speaking of which, isn’t Taka-nii’s birthday next week?!” Hiroki quickly dashed to the fridge where he had a calendar posted and checked the date. He was right. “Hmm, now what to get to him for his birthday? He can’t eat strawberries anymore, apparently.” Hiroki rubbed his chin in thought.

Soon, his phone rang. Looking at the ID, a small smile appeared on his face. It was his older brother —Tomohiro.

“Tomo-nii? What’s up?”

 _“Hey, I need your help.”_ The older Moriuchi started.  _“I want to buy something for Nii-san, but I’m stuck.”_ He groaned out.  _“I already plan to buy him a strawberry cake but I need something to go along with it. I can’t buy him any clothes because I don’t know you celebrities’ style and I can’t buy him any shoes because he already has millions and —”_

Hiroki cut him off. “Tomo-nii, you can’t buy Taka-nii a strawberry cake. As a matter of fact, you can’t buy him any food.”

 _“What? Why? Isn’t he strawberry obsessed? Why can’t I buy him—?”_ Tomohiro cut himself off.  _“You, is it because you’re already buying him why I can’t? Huh?!”_

Hiroki laughed at his brother’s brewing rage. “No, that’s not it. Taka-nii is pregnant so he’s having food aversions and morning sickness at the moment.”

Tomohiro fell silent. At first, Hiroki thought that the call had ended but pulling the phone from his ears and looking at the screen; he saw that it was still connected.

“Tomo-nii?”

 _“Ye-yeah, I’m just…I’m just a bit…”_ he stuttered unable to construct a sentence properly due to his shock.  _“…did you just say that Nii-san is…pregnant?”_

“Yes bro. We’re gonna be uncles!” Hiroki chirped. “Isn’t that great!?”

_“What do you mean? How the hell is Nii-san and Toru-san gonna tell Dad!?”_

“Well…” Hiroki trailed off, “…that ain’t my problem.”

 _“Of course! It’s_ our  _problem! What if Dad disowns Nii-san or something!? Or he’s not pleased that he’s going to be a grandpa or whatever? Do you have any idea of the disaster that’ll bring upon us?!”_

Hiroki hummed. “Taka-nii will be sad, of course. But he’ll have Ryo-san, Tomo-san and Toru-san  _plus_ Toru-san’s family cheering him on. And us. So what’s the big deal?”

_“You fool!”_

Hiroki had to pull the phone from his ears at Tomohiro’s shout.

 _“This is Nii-san we’re talking about! His relationship with Dad_  recently  _got mended, so naturally he'd want Dad's support! However, if Dad's not pleased about it, or there to motivate him or even be glad that he’ll be a grandpa will seriously affect him! It’ll be catastrophic!”_

Hiroki blanched in realization. “And since he’s pregnant, he’s like a fucking pendulum…” Hiroki gasped out in horror.

 _“Exactly! His moods will be swinging all over the place! Which means, we’re all gonna be stressed out! Which fucking means, the world will end!”_ Tomohiro reasoned.  _“So how is it_ not  _our problem again?”_ he spat with sarcasm.

“Alright, alright, Tomo-nii. Don’t deaf me.”

_“You little bastard, you deserved to be deafened.”_

The call later ended on a much friendlier note between the brothers and as usual, Hiroki continued to tease Tomohiro. But throughout all this, the older male was a bit iffy on believing Hiroki. After all, the young vocalist was always tricking and teasing him so this time, he wanted to make sure, by calling Taka for confirmation. Although there was a part of him which felt that this was something Hiroki wouldn’t joke about but he needed to make sure.

…

…

_So I’m lying my way from you!_

_I want to be pushed aside_

_So let me go (no, no turning back now)_

Taka’s eyes slowly opened upon hearing the song. Groggily, he felt around for his phone on the bedside table as the ringtone was blaring and relentless. Toru groaned beside him, a little bit upset that he was suddenly woken up by Taka’s phone.

Without even looking at the screen, Taka answered rather sleepily, “Hello?”

_“Nii-san! Is that you?!”_

“Hmm…yeah...” Taka barely replied, the sleepiness was evident in his voice. He recognized who it was from the way he was being addressed. Only one person in his life called him “Nii-san” and that was Tomohiro.

“ _Hiro told me that you’re pregnant, is that true? I think he’s trying to con me out of buying you what I want for your birthday.”_

“Yeah, I am. Twins.” The vocalist yawned, half aware of what he was saying. “Good morning to you too, Tomohiro.”

“ _Don’t try to change the subject!”_

“Wait, we were talking about something?” he droned. “I don’t remember.”

“ _Nii-san! We’re having a serious discussion here!”_

“Hnn? What’s...that?” Taka was extremely drowsy to the point that he was starting to cease his thinking. Seeing his lover’s struggles, Toru quickly took the phone from him and replied to Tomohiro.

“Hey, Tomohiro.” He started.

_“Toru-san?! Is…is Nii-san really pregnant?”_

“Yes he is. Twins too. So start celebrating, you’re going to be an uncle.”

 _“Ah…I see…”_ Was all the second Moriuchi could utter due to his shock.  _“I’ll call you back later. I need to breathe.”_

Without a care in the world, Toru said, “Sure.”

The call ended and after he placed the phone on the bedside table, Toru wrapped a hand around Taka’s waist, pulling him closer to spoon. The petit vocalist was still sound asleep even as Toru rubbed his stomach gingerly. Everything felt so surreal; Taka was carrying twins,  _his_ twins. Toru had never felt this happy before in his life. He had the best lover in the world, and he was going to be a daddy. 

“I love you, Takahiro.” Toru whispered into his beloved ear. “I love you so much.”

Just then, he felt a hand tightened around his before hearing Taka’s voice albeit a bit sleepy, “I love you too, Toru.”

Snuggling closer to the vocalist, Toru added one last thing, “And Taka…”

“Hmm?”

“Put the damn phone on silent next time.”

…

After an hour or so, Toru got up begrudgingly out of bed, leaving a sleeping Taka. He headed to his bathroom to freshen up and heaved a sigh of relief. So far, Taka has hardly retched in the mornings, and Toru’s treading carefully when it comes onto Taka’s nutritional intake. It’s painful to see his beloved slumped over the toilet bowl with his body shivering and shaking, emptying his stomach in the hardware.

What’s even worse, there was nothing he could do to help.

When he was done, he headed downstairs where he leaned on the fridge, pondering on what to cook for breakfast. Thank God Taka was still asleep, but he knew that it wouldn’t last. As he stared at the ingredients before him, he’d emptied out their fridge and cupboards, hoping he could find something that Taka could ingest without burying his head in the toilet right after.

“When you don’t know the answer, always check Google.” Toru sighed as he whipped out his phone. He mentally slapped himself for not consulting the search engine earlier, as he would have already finished preparing by now. Just then, a thought came into his mind.

“Hmm...” he hummed as he typed in the search bar, _“Ways to relieve morning sickness”._

…

…

Sitting in a restaurant and enjoying a meal were none other than Ryouta and Tomoya. Usually, they’d go to Toru and Taka’s house, but now that the latter was pregnant, Toru was doing all the cooking. Add to that, this was a time in a couple’s life that the two males thought they’d need some privacy.

“What are we gonna do for Mori-chan’s birthday?” Ryouta asked as he took up a piece of steak with his chopsticks.

“Beats me.” Tomoya shrugged his reply as he absentmindedly poked his steak. “Can’t get him any food because he’ll just bring it back up.”

“Can’t buy him clothes and shoes because he already has millions.” Ryouta continued with a distressed sigh.

“How about we just buy him a guitar?” The drummer then suggested. “Like, a purple coloured one? Or a glow in the dark one?” he perked up at the last suggestion.

Ryouta paused. “The last one makes no sense. Mori-chan isn’t on stage playing anything when we have instrumentals.” He then grinned. “But, remember  _that_ for  _my_ birthday.”

Tomoya rolled his eyes. “Whatever,”

“Come on Tomo-kun! It’ll be cool!” Ryouta shrieked, eyes sparkling with glee. “Imagine, during an instrumental, the lights dim and all our instruments are glowing in the dark! You could even get glow in the dark drumsticks or something!”

The drummer was swayed. Images ran through his mind of what Ryouta described, and frankly, it does seem like a good idea. But…that’ll have to wait until Taka gives birth and the babies are ―

“Wait…I just had a thought.”

“Hmm? What?” Ryouta asked, his words were a bit muffled given that he was stuffing his face with yet another piece of meat. “You got a stroke of genius in which gift we can buy?”

“No, but, Taka-chan is pregnant, right…?”

Ryouta stared at Tomoya like he was an idiot. “No, he’s just six weeks bloated.” He deadpanned.

Tomoya frowned. He hadn’t asked a question per say, and Ryouta didn’t even allow him to finish. “What I was saying before you entered with your sarcasm, does that mean he’ll, you know,  _push_ the babies out when the time comes? Or…”

The chopsticks fell out of Ryouta’s hands. Thinking on it, the bassist looked as equally stumped as Tomoya was. “I…" he trailed off before coming in again, "...good question.” He leaned forwards, resting his elbows on the table and his chin on his palm. “Will he even breastfeed too?” he added. “I mean, imaging Mori-chan with breasts is a bit odd…” he trailed off. “… _disturbing_.”

A tensed silence befell the two men. Either wanted to say something but nothing came out their mouths. Sadly, their imaginations ran wild at the thought and inwardly, Tomoya shivered, Ryouta looked pale. 

"Anyway!" he said quickly to change the subject. "Back to the issue at hand, what the hell are we getting him for his birthday?"

"I haven't a clue."

...

...

“Are you sure we need to tell her in person?” Toru asked as he undid his seatbelt. “Couldn’t we have just called like everyone else?”

Taka shook his head. “She’s my Mom, and I want to tell her.” He then grinned at the guitarist. “Plus, not everyone found out over the phone. Hiro didn’t.”

“Hiro is a different case altogether.” Toru replied swiftly. He then looked at Taka worriedly, “Are you sure about this?”

“Toru!” Taka said, dragging a hand over his face. “We’re at her house! If I wasn’t sure, I would have told you to turn around before we got here. All we’re gonna do is tell her, cheer a little bit and then leave, ne? No need to worry.”

Toru scoffed. “Wow.” He said with sarcasm. “I’m just worried that your nausea will pop up _while_ at Masako-san’s house. You know, I’ve read that even perfume can set you off.”

“I’ll be fine, Toru.”

“Fine. Whatever you say,”

“Kimi wo, omou wa kimochi~” Taka sang the lyrics from _“Wherever You Are”_ , giving Toru a peck on the lips. He exited the car quickly, with Toru following, walking up to the door of Masako’s house.  The vocalist practically bounced up to the front porch, back to his chirpy and high spirited self. It was all thanks to Google, earlier, Toru was able to cook breakfast for Taka, in which the shorter male needn’t worry about bringing anything back up.

The secret ingredient: ginger.

When he’d read up that the root could be used as a means to alleviate morning sickness, he made sure to search for recipes. And oh, how wonderful it was. Usually, Taka is unable to set foot in the kitchen, but with the aroma of the ginger filling everywhere, the small vocalist couldn’t help it.

Lo and behold, Taka wasn’t halfway to the bathroom, or reaching for the rubbish bin, in fact, he was fine. His reaction had been:

“Toru, what kind of sorcery is this?”

All Toru could have done was laugh at him and reply, “The sorcery of Ginger.” The guitarist never knew ginger could have been so powerful and made a mental note to stack up on as much as he could. Of course he wasn’t going to overdose Taka with it, but investing in a couple soaps with a ginger fragrance ought to keep Taka’s nausea in check.

Ringing the doorbell, the couple waited a few seconds until she opened the door.

“Takahiro!” Masako chirped when she saw her son smiling brightly at her. Her eyes looked across to Toru and she greeted him. “Thank you for taking care of my boy, Toru-kun.”

“It’s no big deal.” Toru said as he waved a hand dismissively.

“Come in, come in.” She said as she opened the door wider for them to enter. Being here numerous times in the past, the two made their way to the living room and sat in the sofa nestled in the centre of the room.

“So what brings you two love-birds here?” she smiled. “Do you want some tea?”

“No, Mom. We aren’t staying long, either way.” Taka quickly said.

“Oh.” Masako looked a bit dejected. But then she looked to Taka, “Is everything alright? I’ve been hearing that you collapsed on stage.”

Taka and Toru exchanged knowing glances; Masako raised an eyebrow at this action. To her, it seems as though they knew something and that’s probably why they came here today.

“Is there something you have to tell me?”

“Mom…I…” Taka started before taking in a deep breath. Toru rubbed his back gently as a means of support. “I’m pregnant.”

Silence befell the entire room for a minute or more. Masako stared at Taka as though he wasn’t speaking Japanese. Seeing how unresponsive the woman was, Taka was inwardly starting to worry, thinking that she wasn’t pleased or someshit.

“Ho―How?” she finally uttered. “Do you have _that_ gene?” she gasped in shock.

“Yeah, Mom.”

She released a breath that she didn’t realize she was holding and leaned backwards in the chair. She then rubbed her temples as though she was about to have a migraine and this worried Taka even further.

 _Maybe Toru was right,_ Taka thought. _I should’ve called her._

As though equipped with ESP, Toru could sense his lover’s distress and pulled him in an embrace before addressing Masako,

“Congratulations Masako-san, you’re going to be a grandma.”

“Right…” she said absentmindedly. But when given a couple seconds when it finally sunk in, a tear fell from her eye. “I’m actually going to be a grandma.” She got up and shrieked, “I’m going to be a grandma!” she grabbed Taka’s hands and pulled him up, jumping and swinging his hands. “How far along are you?! When are you due?! What are you having?! Boy?! Girl!?” She fired off the questions in a rapid succession.

Taka blushed at his mother’s excitement. “I’m _just_ six weeks Mom. And we’re going to find out my due date next week. The gender will come later.”

“Oh!” she screamed and pulled her son into a tight embrace. “I’m so happy! For you and Toru-kun!”

“Ah…” Toru started, Taka missing the grin on the guitarist’s face because his back was turned. “…he’s having twins, you know?”

“Toru!” Taka screeched. Toru shrugged his shoulders playfully.

At this point, Masako released Taka and stared at him. She couldn’t believe what Toru had just said, but she knew the taller male wasn’t the type to joke like this.  “You’re having _twins?”_

“Yeah…”

Yet again, with a joyous scream, she viciously grabbed him and pulled him into an embrace. She sobbed into his shoulder and swayed a little. “Takahiro…I’m so happy. So, so happy.”

“Me too…me too…”

She pulled away from him after which Toru approached her and wiped the tears from her face.

“Don’t cry Masako-san.”

“I’m just so happy, really happy.” She laughed. She then cupped Taka’s cheeks and said, “If you need anything, you can always ask me.” She smiled. As though realizing something, she gasped and placed a hand on her cheek. “I have to start planning your baby shower!”

Toru coughed loudly at this declaration. It seems that telling Masako in person was a good idea because he feels that she would have been like Hiro —show up at their door minutes later demanding answers.

“Mom! I don’t need a baby shower!” Taka refused, turning his face away to hide the blush.

“What do you mean you don’t need one!?” She shrieked angrily. “I’m going to throw you one, _whether you like it or not.”_ She looked at him with a menacing aura. “ _Do I make myself clear?”_

“Yes Ma’am.” The vocalist whimpered in submission. He knew better than to argue with his mother, and let her have her own way especially in things like these. Toru chuckled at the interaction between the two, and inwardly sighed a relief. At the outset when they had just announced their relationship, she wasn’t in the slightest pleased. For a while she had seemed distant and unresponsive but after a while, she had come around to accept their relationship.

Still, they had a bigger obstacle —Moriuchi Shinichi. Upon until this day the man refuses to accept that Taka is in a relationship with Toru, which the guitarist fails to understand. Separate on a part from that, Shinichi has no hostile feelings towards Toru. Both men could converse in a civil manner about almost everything, but when it comes onto Toru’s relationship with Taka…

“Oh God,” Toru groaned out while dragging a hand over his face in distress. Taka and Masako had stop the giggling and the chatting and the whatever to turn and look at the redhead.

“What’s the matter Toru-kun?”

“I don’t know how we’re going to tell Shinichi-san.” He sighed. Instantly, Taka’s face blanched. Talking to his Mom, he had totally forgotten that he had his Dad to deal with.

“Oh. I can talk to him for you. If you’d like.” Masako smiled. “Think of it as warming him up or something.”

“Would that work?” Toru asked.

Masako snorted. “No.” she shrugged her shoulders as she made her way into the kitchen. “But at least it’ll prep him for what’s to come.”

Taka shook his head. “If you tell him, he may not want to see me or anything. I just want to tell him and leave.”

Masako nodded, “That sounds like him, alright.”

For some more minutes they were engaged in “baby talk”, Masako clearly expressing that she wanted her son to have girls. That way, she could dress them up and do their hairs since she never had that opportunity given that all three of her children are males. Toru on the other hand, stated that he wanted boys since they’ll be easier to handle. Taka, their gender didn’t matter to him, all he wanted for them to be born safe and sound.

Soon, the two departed from Masako’s house, the enka singer was practically beaming. It was clear that she really was excited for their new babies, and the couple knew that with the coming months, they’ll be hearing a lot from Masako.

…

…

Leaving Masako’s house,  the couple reached Shinichi’s house, Taka was agitated and jittery. Before they headed to the man’s door, they waited a while in the car, Toru concerned for Taka’s emotional wellbeing.

“No really, are you sure about this? Shouldn’t we have made a foolproof plan first?” Toru was actually freaking out, and he wasn’t the one pregnant. He _knew_ what Shinichi was like in regards to their relationship and with Taka being pregnant; one slip could have the smaller man breaking out in tears and all that dramatic stuff.

Taka shook his head. “No amount of planning can help us. I just want to get this over with.”

“Taka…”

“It’s best we tell him now. That way, he could at least say I had the decency to tell him, ne?”

“That’s true, but still, I’m worried Taka.”

“It’ll be fine. Now wait here.” The vocalist said as he undid his seatbelt and opened the door.

“Wait…” the guitarist paused. “…the fuck?! I’m not sending you alone in there!”

“ _Toru…”_ He said while batting his lashes at the taller male. There was only one reason why Taka never wanted Toru there; he really didn’t think he could deal with a mad Toru and a disappointed Dad in the same room. And a mad Toru was something he didn’t want to see again. _Ever._   

“Don’t…” Toru pleaded. “…at least let me come with you.”

“No —” he didn’t finish his sentence because Toru was already exiting the car with the most serious face he’d ever seen.

“I’m coming whether or not you want me to.” The guitarist hissed. “You’re going to tell him and get the hell out of there.”

“Yes Sir.” Taka joked.

Pressing the doorbell, the two waited outside for couple seconds before the man answered. With a pleasant smile on his face, he greeted them and ushered them inwards. Moriuchi Shinichi wasn’t a bad man, in fact, he was quite jovial and a fun person to be around on good days. However, there are certain topics that must be avoided at all costs, and they were about to do just the opposite.

“Takahiro, it’s good to see you in good health.” Shinichi started when they all settled in the sofa. He had been drinking tea, and thankfully, Taka’s nausea hadn’t acted up.

“Yeah, I was never sick to begin with.” Taka replied, playing with his thumbs nervously.

Shinichi raised an eyebrow and looked at Toru, in hopes of getting an explanation for that statement. Toru avoided the man’s gaze and focused on Taka. He held his lover’s hand and squeezed, as a means of showing support.

“Then…?”

“Dad, I —” Taka broke off when they heard Toru’s phone ringing. The redhead sprung up in fright and mentally cursed, wondering who was it that had the audacity to call at this moment. Looking at the caller ID, he looked to Taka and mouthed “Gocchan” before excusing himself to answer.

Now Taka was left with his father in an atmosphere so tense that Taka felt like he’ll be suffocated.

“Takahiro, I’m waiting.” Shinichi started. “It isn’t something tragic, right?” he asked with a worried tone. “I know you said you weren’t sick, but this is making me worried.”

“I’m pregnant.” The vocalist blurted out.

Shinichi looked like he saw a ghost. Even the tea cup had nearly fallen out of his hands onto the coffee table. He leaned back into the furniture before resting his elbows on his knees.

“ _What?”_ His voice was stern and sounded angry, even Taka flinched when he heard it.

“I’m pregnant, Dad.”

 _“What?!”_ He roared. He slammed his palms onto the desk and rose to his feet. “What, Takahiro?!”

“Dad…”

“Don’t “Dad” me! As if your relationship with Toru-kun wasn’t enough! Now you’re telling me you’re _pregnant?!”_ Shinichi shouted. “Jesus Christ! What have you done?! Do you have any idea what will happen if this gets out?!”

“So what?!” Taka barked back. “Even if we don’t have the best relationship, shouldn’t you be at least happy that you’ll be a grandfather?!”

Shinichi scoffed. “That thing is _not_ my grandchild!” he hissed.

That stunned Taka into silence. He stared at his father with wide eyes, unable to counter due to his shock. Tears welled in his beautiful eyes and streamed down his cheeks as he cradled his arms around his stomach instinctively.

“My babies aren’t things!” He screeched.

Upon realizing what he said, Shinichi reached out for his son, “Takahiro…I —”

“Don’t touch me!” Taka barked at him, swatting away Shinichi’s hand. “I hate you. I fucking hate you!”

With that, Taka spun on his heel and exited the living room. He dashed to the door and viciously swung it open, where he entered into Toru’s arms. The man was still on the phone with Gocchan but seeing the state that Taka was in, he ended the call, telling their manager he’ll call back later.

“Babe…what’s wrong?!” he asked in alarm.

“Take —take me home.” Taka sobbed. “ _Now.”_

“Taka…what did he say to you? Tell me.”

“He called our babies things, Toru.” Taka sobbed. “He called our precious babies — _things!_ ”

Toru never knew what to say. Instead, he locked his arms around Taka’s waist and pulled him into an embrace, full of comfort and warmth. Taka cries turned into wails, his tears were starting to soak Toru’s shirt. Said guitarist felt two emotions; rage —as he couldn’t believe that Shinichi had referred to his and Taka’s babies as objects, something lesser than a human being —and sadness, given that he had only turned his back for like what, two minutes? And then Taka bursts through the door with streams of tears flowing relentlessly down his cheeks.

“I…I had hoped…” Taka said in between hiccups. “…that’s he’d at least be happy like Mom was.”

“Shh…” Toru tried to comfort. “It’ll be fine.”

“No it won’t!” the vocalist shouted, pushing himself out of Toru’s chest. “It’s painful Toru! Dad doesn’t…Dad doesn’t…” he was unable to continue his sentence as he broke out in full blown tears yet again.

“Alright. Let’s get you home, shall we?”

…

…

Taka had cried himself to sleep on the way back home; Toru felt like someone was twisting a knife in his chest. His precious Takahiro isn’t supposed to cry like this. His precious Takahiro shouldn’t have felt such heartache.

As Toru made his way upstairs carrying Taka bridal style, he thought up of all different ways to mend this situation. Taka won’t be back to normal _unless_ Shinichi apologizes or someshit, and that’ll take a while because the man hasn’t even accepted that Toru and Taka were together.

 _And_ since that won’t happen anytime soon, with his hormones raging all over the place, Taka is going to be a lot harder to handle which in turn, will _stress_ him out. And by extension, Ryouta and Tomoya, since they’re always at the house.

Gently placing his beloved on the bed and covering him, Toru took out his phone and dialled Ryouta’s number.

“Hey, Ryouta,” Toru said as soon as the bassist answered.

_“What’s it, Toru?”_

“Could you come over and keep Taka’s company? He’s asleep for the moment though.”

 _“Ah, sure!”_ the young bassist perked. He didn’t even ask Toru where he was going as he knew that the bandleader will _never_ Taka alone unless it’s something important. _“Tomo-kun! We’re gonna be babysitting Mori-chan!”_

_“Heeh? Are we getting food!?”_

Toru chuckled at the two’s interaction and bid farewell to Ryouta. Placing his phone into his pocket, he leaned over and kissed Taka on his forehead before softly closing their bedroom door behind him. He headed down the stairs quickly and jumped into his car, he didn’t even bother to close the front door since he knew Ryouta and Tomoya would here in a heartbeat.

For minutes he drove in silence, something that Toru never does. There’s always music playing in the car whether Taka is with him or not. But this time, he was so mad that all he wanted to do was to get where he was going and vent.

…

…

Moriuchi Shinichi plopped himself into the grey sofa.

He let out a distressed sigh as he dragged a hand over his face, remembering the events that transpired some minutes ago. Taka, his eldest son along with Toru —his _lover_ — had been here to inform him that the former was pregnant. The moment Taka told him, he couldn’t believe it. More like, he _didn’t want to._

He’s been hearing all over the news of how One Ok Rock’s Taka had suddenly collapsed on stage and had to be taken to the hospital and blah blah. But he never really paid it much attention given that _if_ something had really happened, then the band members or even Gocchan would have informed him of his son’s demise or something. But, he hadn’t received anything of the sort.

So, imagine when both Taka and Toru showed up at his door, entered his house and told him, in essence, that he was going to be a grandfather. Shocked couldn’t describe how surprised he was. He was downright _flabbergasted._ And what made it worse; he never accepted his son’s relationship with the guitarist.

He just couldn’t understand how that worked. And frankly, in his eyes, it’s not natural. A “love” like that shouldn’t happen. _Ever._ No matter how much he tried to talk to Taka, the vocalist would not listen. He’s been like a broken record for the past two years saying that “I love Toru and nothing will change that”.

How infuriating it was.

He’s always wanted the best for Taka. He’d always imagined him marrying a beautiful young woman and having children with her. Never in his wildest dreams had he imagined Taka falling in love with another man, let alone his own guitarist?

_Inconceivable!_

Rest assured, Shinichi doesn’t hate Toru. Absolutely not. The old Moriuchi could discuss things with the guitarist with ease and in good faith, but when it came onto his relationship with Taka, then that’s where they draw the line. And as such, they never brought it up or anything that could lead to it.

“I can’t believe he’s pregnant with Toru’s baby…” Shinichi groaned. “I can’t —” He broke off when he remembered what Taka said:

_“My babies aren’t things!”_

Babies. Aren’t.

Those two words are _plural_. Shinichi gasped at the realization. His son was having multiples. But, was that something that ran in Toru’s family? For a fact, not to his knowledge at least, there hasn’t been any record of a twin or triplet etc in _his_ family nor Masako’s.

But before his train of thoughts could go on any further, he heard his doorbell ringing. An eyebrow was raised as he had no idea of who the visitor might be. As he walked to the door, his mind ran on all the possibilities but found none. One set would just open the door and enter; another set would call on the phone first.

When he opened the door, he was shocked to see the cause of his current headache.

“Hello, Shinichi-san.” The tall redhead said with an (outwardly) pleasant smile. “We have some things to discuss.”

Although he wore a smile, it didn’t need a rocket scientist to tell Shinichi that beneath all that sparkle, Yamashita Toru was fucking pissed.

“Well, so do I.”

But guess what, so was he.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! 
> 
> As you can see, or if you've noticed, the "Angst" tag was added because one writer has some dark and worrisome shit planned that she thought was just "drama".


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

_“You’ve gotta listen, listen, listen.”_

—One Ok Rock, _“Listen”_

…

The two males sat facing each other; the only thing separating them was the small coffee table with a lone magazine on it. With his fingers entangled, Toru was leaning forwards with his forearms resting on his thighs. Shinichi, on the other hand, was in a normal upright position, but the older male could feel Toru’s rage emanating from his body in waves.

“So, what is it that you wanted to discuss, Toru-kun?” Shinichi asked to get the conversation going.

Toru snorted. “As if you don’t already know.” The redhead then leaned backwards and placed one hand on the back of the sofa. “Why —how could you say something like that to Taka? Do you have any idea of how much he’s hurting right now?”

Shinichi didn’t bat an eye. “I’m hurting as well. How do you expect me to feel when my eldest son came and told me he was _pregnant?”_

“Joyous. Elated. Surprised.” Toru deadpanned. This struck Toru as odd; as Shinichi had a good relationship with all his sons ―he _loves_ them. Despite his and Taka’s rocky relationship at the start, the two were on good terms now. “Plus, Taka isn’t a teenager. He’s a grown man.”

Shinichi sighed while rubbing his temples. “It doesn’t matter whether or not he’s a grown man, Toru-kun. It’s the fact that he _chose_ to love _you_ , another _male_. And then to top it off, he’s pregnant. He isn’t even married!” The older male said while leaning forwards. “I’ve always wanted the best for my boys. _Always._ ”

Toru raised an eyebrow at this statement. _Are you saying that I’m not the best for Taka?_

“I’ve always imagined Takahiro married to a beautiful woman and living happily. How do you expect me to feel when I realize that my son is ―”

“ _Regardless_ ,” Toru cut in, “You said you’ve always wanted your children to be happy. Isn’t Taka happy? Huh? Isn’t he?” Toru sighed as he saw Shinichi stiffened. “Then what is the problem? Why can’t you accept our relationship? Is it because you don’t want the whole world to know that your eldest son is gay or something? Huh?”

Shinichi twitched. “That…” he trailed off. “It’s just not natural Toru-kun. Tell me, how can two males fall in love with each other? How?”

“It’s the same as how a male and a female fall in love.” The guitarist quipped. “I see no difference. As a matter of fact, there is _no_ difference.” He continued, “All I’m asking is to just give us a chance. You know I’d never hurt Taka if that’s what you’re worried about. We’ve been keeping our relationship away from the public eyes if you think once word gets out Taka will be ruined or something.” Toru said in a calmer tone than before. “But please, don’t do this to Taka. He’s going to need your support as well.”

Shinichi remained silent. He knew Toru well enough to know that what the guitarist said was true, but he still couldn’t accept this. He _couldn’t._

“I think that’s enough.” He finally said. “Thank you for coming, Toru-kun, but I think you should get back home to Takahiro.”

“Ah…” Toru said with a sigh. _He’s asking me nicely to get out. At least he still got some decency._ “Good day, Shinichi-san.” He said with a respectful bow. And with that, Toru left, completely missing the downcast look on Shinichi’s face.

 …

Toru sighed as he sat in the driver’s seat. That didn’t go as planned but at least; he managed to make _some_ progress. Shinichi was as stubborn as Taka, probably more, so getting him to come around will be a herculean task.

“Shit, I don’t know what to do…” Toru murmured as he slumped over the steering wheel. “…Taka isn’t going to be alright if this prolongs.”

Toru turned the keys in the ignition and drove off, all along the way trying to think up something that may remedy this situation. For a fact, he knew that they couldn’t just cut off Shinichi or something, Taka loves his father and vice-versa although in their earlier days things weren’t so smooth. But now _this_ happened and it seems as though it may threaten to have their relationship end up going back to square one.

When Toru arrived home, the first thing that greeted him was Ryouta and Tomoya’s gazes of concern. And before he could even say anything, they fired off questions like inquisitive children.

“Toru! What’s wrong with Mori-chan? Why’s he crying!?” Ryouta asked.

“He’s awake?” Toru asked.

“And why isn’t he letting anyone in?! We went to comfort him but he said he wanted to be alone and blah. The hell happened?!” The drummer nearly shrieked, ignoring Toru’s question. “Tell us! Who had the audacity to make Taka-chan cry?! Who is the wretched motherfucker?!”

Toru rubbed his temples. Tomoya had gone into his protective big brother mode. “First, tell me what happened.”

“Alright.” Ryouta started. “Tomo-kun and I arrived and were chilling until we decided to check up on Mori-chan, you know, to ask if he wants anything. But, we heard crying! Some seriously heartbreaking and tear-jerking sobs! So we knocked on the door but he told us to stay away and shit! He even locked the door!”

“I was so tempted to get an axe and chop your door open but I wasn’t sure if Taka-chan was standing behind it or not.” The drummer added as though chopping open a door with an axe was a normal thing to do.

Toru blanched. Does he have an axe at home? He doesn’t think so. But getting back to the issue at hand, the guitarist addressed the two, “He’s crying because Shinichi-san is still being stubborn. And I don’t know why he’s shutting you guys out.”

Ryouta and Tomoya clamped up at that. To think that the “wretched motherfucker” as the drummer so blatantly put it earlier was none other than Moriuchi Shinichi. It wasn’t so much of a shocker _now,_ but they’d thought that at least he’d be glad that he’s getting grandchildren.

“What…what did he say?” Ryouta asked. He knew that Shinichi didn’t approve of their relationship but given that Taka was in tears, Shinichi must’ve said something really heartbreaking for their vocalist to be behaving like he was.

“I don’t know, Gocchan called and I had to take it.” Toru sighed in distress. “But Taka came bawling his eyes out, and only told me that Shinichi-san wasn’t really happy to be a grandfather.”

“Wow. I can’t even imagine what he told Mori-chan.” Ryouta gasped out. “He must be devastated.”

“He was.” Toru said.

“So what are we gonna do? I mean, if Shinichi-san doesn’t think of your babies as his grandchildren, wouldn’t that ― _I don’t know_ ― drive Mori-chan away from his dad, _again?”_  Ryouta said in a slight panic.

“Their relationship will be done for.” Tomoya sighed.

Silence befell the three, as neither knew what to say at this moment. Shinichi was stubborn and getting him to accept Taka’s pregnancy isn’t going to be a walk in the park. And while everyone so far has accepted it with open arms, the three men knew that as a son, having a father’s support is the greatest thing ever.

“So what do we do?” Tomoya started up when the silence got the better of him. “Do we try to persuade Shinichi-san or something?”

“That’s mission impossible, bro.” Ryouta said while shaking his head. “He’s as stubborn as Mori-chan or even more!”

“He’ll feel like we’re imposing on him.” Toru said, “Plus, I went to talk to him earlier today and ―”

“So that’s where you went!” the two screeched.

“―it seems like he’s not going to budge.” Toru continued as though he wasn’t just interrupted. “He loves Taka but I don’t know, he’s just against our relationship because “it’s not natural”.” The guitarist mimicked the aged Moriuchi.

“Pfft!” Ryouta laughed. “What really are “natural” and “unnatural”? I mean, who told us what is “natural” for human beings to do from what isn’t? Like, it’s natural for us Japanese to wear face masks when we have the flu right? But in other countries, they don’t. They walk around with tissues.”

Toru and Tomoya exchanged confused glances with each other.

“Ryouta…” Tomoya started. “…you had me in the beginning, you really did. But tell me, how does face masks and flu come into this?”

“What!? It was an example of how “what is natural” between races!”

“What?”

“Anyway, that’s not solving the problem we have on our hands.” Toru said while rubbing his temples.

“Why don’t we ―?” Ryouta started but broke off upon seeing the stares he was getting. “Why are you looking at me like that?!”

“I hope it isn’t something dumb like what you said earlier.”

“No!” The bassist nearly screamed. “I was going to suggest that we could try to keep Mori-chan’s mind off all this. Like surround him with stuff and people that won’t remind him of Shinichi-san until he comes around, you know? I mean, Shinichi-san couldn’t _possibly_ stay like this _forever,_ right?”

“Wow, you’ve totally redeemed yourself, Ryouta.” Toru grinned as he ruffled the younger’s hair. “Good job.”

“So _how_ do we do that? Right now he isn’t even opening the door.” Tomoya grumbled.

“Leave it to me.” Toru said with a small smirk.

“You go baby-daddy! So us single bastards how it’s done!” the two said with sass.

“Why are you two in sync?!”

Yet again, Ryouta and Tomoya shrugged their shoulders simultaneously.

The guitarist then left the crazy duo downstairs and headed to his lover in their bedroom. He turned the knob slowly and found that the vocalist had locked the door, but luckily, Toru had his keys. He opened the door and entered, only to find a sleeping Taka. His back was facing the door but when Toru approached him, he felt his heart shatter.

On his precious’ cheeks were tear stains. Subconsciously, Toru used his thumb to wipe them off, and covered him up underneath the sheets. “Don’t worry Love; everything’s going to be okay.” He kissed his forehead gently. “I’ll make sure of it.”

…

Toru returned downstairs and before he could even utter a word, Ryouta asked,

“Toru, what are you getting Mori-chan for his birthday?”

 _Oh shit._ “Isn’t that next week?”

“Monday.”

“Fuck.”

“So what are you getting him?” Tomoya asked.

“I haven’t a clue.”

“Well, Tomo-kun and I plan to buy him some kitchen utensils. I mean, Mori-chan loves to cook, right?”

Toru couldn’t believe his ears. He stared his bassist and drummer for the longest while unable to think of a way to counter them.

“Seriously?” he managed to ask. “Kitchen utensils?”

“Yeah. We can’t buy him any clothes, now can we?” Tomoya said while gesturing to his abdomen.

“We can’t buy him any shoes because sooner or later, he won’t be able to tie the laces.” Ryouta added.

“Taka isn’t going to be pregnant forever! Why are you talking as though he’ll _never_ get to wear them?!”

“But Toru, nine months is almost like forever.”

“No. It’s not.” Toru deadpanned. But then he felt like a fool to even give a reply to that statement. But quickly, wanting to change the subject, he then said, “So, what are we going to do for Taka’s birthday?”

“Simple, we throw him a party. But the problem is the food.” Tomoya sighed. “I feel the grey hairs coming and it’s not even time yet.”

“And gifts. Don’t forget the gifts.” Ryouta added with a nod. “Since apparently, we can’t buy Mori-chan kitchen utensils.” He added an eye roll in Toru’s direction.

Toru was not amused. “Go look in the kitchen then. Taka has almost every tool under sun.”

“Almost. Not all.” He countered with a grin.

“I’m not even going to have this with you.” Toru said with a shake of the head. He took his phone out of his pocket and unlocked it, then proceeded to dial.

“Who’re you calling?” Tomoya asked.

“Hiro.” The guitarist replied. “He’s the only one who can save us now.”

…

…

Satoh Takeru slumped in his chair, heaving a sigh of relief. His day had been hectic, as always, given that he was filming the live-adaptation of _Inuyashiki._ He was currently home, wondering on what to do for the rest of the evening. He knew he should rest, but he couldn’t find it in him to go up to his bed and sleep.

Instead, he unlocked his phone and before he started doing anything, the date jumped out at him. “Well, shit, isn’t Taka’s birthday next week?”

Looking at the calendar for confirmation, he saw that it was indeed so. Next week Monday to be exact. And it was just Friday, which meant, he had to work fast.

Opening up his dialling pad, the actor decided to make some phone calls.  

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

_“So everybody, ever be buddies…”_

—One Ok Rock _“C.h.a.o.s.m.y.t.h”_

…

The following days, Taka returned to normal. Of course there were instances where his morning sickness would flare up, but for Toru, that was the least of his problems. Until now, Shinichi hasn’t called Taka, making the guitarist fret about the two’s relationship. He never wanted what Ryouta and Tomoya thought to come true, but at the rate at which things were going, it’s a high possibility.

Shaking his head to rid the thoughts, Toru focused on the matter before him. Today was Taka’s birthday, and he along with Ryouta, Tomoya, Hiroki and Tomohiro had planned to throw him a party, not a big one because none of their friends knew that the vocalist was pregnant. It would have been awkward if they invited their friends and Taka’s nausea acted up because of their perfumes, or they brought strawberries and it set him off.

At the moment, the couple was at home; curled up in bed —Toru was leaning on the mounds of pillows against the headboard, while Taka rested his head on the guitarist’s bare chest allowing his lover to play in his curly hair.

   _So where can I bring him until the others finish setting up?_ Toru thought. _Maybe I can just drive around, or take him to a music store or_ _—_

“Hello! Hi, Takeru!”

Toru was taken out of his thoughts when he heard Taka perk up. He paused in stroking Taka’s luscious curls, wondering if his hearing was accurate. While he didn’t hate Takeru, he wondered what the actor could be calling about at this moment. Shouldn’t he be in the middle of some shoot or filming or something?

“Ah yeah, I’m fine.” He heard Taka said in his usual chirp. There was a momentary pause before he said again, “No, I’m at home.”

 _What are they talking about?_ Toru wondered.

Taka laughed, “I’m at home because Toru plans to take me out later. Why? What’s the matter?”

There was a long pause with Taka occasionally humming in confirmation or whatever. Then, he faced Toru while removing the phone from his ear, “Hey, Takeru wants to meet up with me, could you drop me off?”

“Eh?”

“I said, Takeru wants to meet up. I wanna go. You should drop me off at where he is.”

Toru raised his eyebrow. “Sure, I don’t ―” he broke off as he remembered one great detail. Taka’s pregnant. And at the moment, he can’t stand strawberries. Takeru doesn’t know that. Plus, there’s a chance that there’ll be others at this “meet-up”, which means, perfume and cologne in abundance. _Which fucking means,_ there’s a high chance that Taka’s nausea will act up and have him emptying his stomach for the whole day.

“Uh, let me talk to him.” Toru finally said, reaching for the phone. Taka gave him a questioning look before handing his lover the device. “Yo, Takeru.”

_“What’s up Toru? How’s everything been?”_

“Fine. So about this “meet-up”, you’ll need to tell me in great detail where it will be, who’ll be there and the food.”

 _“Huh? What’s with the sudden ―”_ the actor broke off as he thought he realized something. _“Was Taka actually poisoned that’s why he fainted on the stage!? Is that why you’re behaving like this now?”_

“Uh…” he was tempted to say “yes” but he remembered that Taka will eventually start showing, so no lying possible. But it wasn’t that he didn’t want to tell Takeru, the time was just not right, yet. “…no. That’s not the reason.”

 _“Oh thank God.”_ He heaved a relief. _“But, it’s really just us friends. I haven’t seen Taka in ages, so I thought we could catch up since his schedule is a little bit freer now.”_

“Oh.” Toru sighed a relief. He’d thought that this meet-up was probably some surprise birthday party for Taka because if that were the case, call him evil and wicked, he wouldn’t allow Taka in such an environment. He definitely wouldn’t enjoy his time if his head is constantly down a toilet.

“Where are you meeting him?”

_“I was thinking of going to Ryotei Manpuku. It’s in Roppongi Hills and it’ll be fine!”_

“Is that a restaurant?”

 _“No not really.”_ Takeru said quickly. Toru’s suspicions rose at the actor’s tone of voice. _“It’s more like a…a place for social gathering that serves food if you order it.”_

“Hell no. Taka isn’t going. He can’t.” Toru very knows that Taka and food these days don’t go together. He couldn’t risk a total disaster happening. It was his lover’s special day, there’s no way Toru would let anyone —intentionally or not—ruin Taka’s day.

_“Why not? It isn’t like we’ll be ordering anything! Toru, why are you being so difficult?”_

“I’m not being difficult. Today’s Taka’s special day, I’m just trying to eliminate any possible disaster.”

“Come on Toru, he said it’s not a restaurant so I’ll be fine.” Taka said with a slight purr while tracing a finger seductively on Toru’s chest.

“But Babe…” Toru responded with a moan.

 _“Ahem! I’m still here!”_ Takeru said strongly. What would have been mortifying is if they started to fuck and forget to hang up the phone.

With a defeated sigh, Toru conceded to let Taka meet with Takeru, but much to his surprise, Takeru insisted that he tags along as well. The guitarist’s suspicions only rose higher, that maybe; _just maybe,_ Takeru was planning a surprise birthday for Taka.

After handing the phone back to Taka, the vocalist chatted a little bit more with his best friend before the call ended.  Putting the phone on the bedside table, Taka sprang up with a chirp, “Let’s go shower! I can’t wait to meet —”

“Where do you think you’re going?” Toru asked with a sultry tone as he grabbed Taka’s wrists, pulling him back down onto the bed. The taller male then pinned him down before climbing on top. “Don’t think you’re going to get away after you’ve stirred me up earlier.”

Taka smirked and wrapped his legs around Toru’s waist. “Fine by me.”

…

…

With the help of GPS, Toru found the _Ryotei Manpuku_ and upon seeing it, he was mad to turn back and go home. It was indeed, a restaurant.

“That sneaky bastard Takeru…he tricked me.” He snarled as he parked. “I should have known.”

Taka rubbed his lover’s back. “Calm down Toru. We can just head in, show our faces and then leave before anything happens, ne?” he gave Toru a chaste kiss on his lips to which the guitarist cupped his cheeks returned the kiss with passion.

“Alright.”

The couple headed through the doors and after talking to the receptionist, they were led to the room where Takeru should be. As Taka pushed the door open and made a step inwards, something crashed into his face as cheers rang out:

“Happy Birthday Taka!”

The colour drained from Toru’s face when he registered what was happening. There Takeru was, with a small cake or pie (a sweet dessert that looked like it was baked) in his hand, which had been in Taka’s face not too long ago. In the room, there were many of their (Taka mostly) friends —he saw MAH, Masato, Koie, Rola among many others that he couldn’t bother to remember at this point. What — _or who rather_ — was on his mind was Taka. He saw the vocalist’s diminutive figure starting to shake and before he knew it, Taka clasped one hand over his mouth and the other at his stomach.

“Shit!” Toru cursed as scooped Taka into the bridal style and looked at Takeru. “Where’s the bathroom?!”

“Down that side —” the actor responded without getting a chance to finish his sentence.

With a mad dash, Toru took off with Taka cradled in his arms, leaving everyone to wonder about what just transpired.

“The fuck just happened?” Masato asked, his English slipped out due to shock. But he quickly switched back to Japanese, “He’s still sick or something?” By now, Japan (and by extension, the entire world) knows about Taka collapsing on stage after their concert which led many (if not all) to believe he was sick.

“No way, Taka told me he was fine earlier today.” Takeru replied. “I don’t understand…”

“Well, that was earlier today. Anything could’ve ―” MAH broke off as he heard Takeru’s phone ringing.

“Hello? Toru?”

 _“I need your help. Come to the bathroom, now.”_ The guitarist’s tone seemed more like a command than anything else.

“Alright.” Ending the call, Takeru headed to the room, and before he could knock on the door, he could hear Taka’s awful retching. His spirit sank, not knowing what the cause of this was. But for some reason, Takeru had a feeling it had to do with the small cake he threw in Taka’s face. But another part of him didn’t want to believe. It had strawberries in there, his favourite, so he shouldn’t be sick because of it, right? _Right?_

“Toru, I’m coming in.” He said as he pushed the door open.

…

“Babe…how are you feeling now?” Toru asked as he helped Taka to wash his face by the sink.

“Terrible.” He choked out. “I feel like ―” he broke off as he felt his stomach churn yet again, after which he proceeded to retch for the umpteenth time, his face practically down in the toilet, his small body shaking from it all.

This really was _terrible_.

While his morning sickness was still around, it wasn’t so bad given that Toru had tried to keep it under control with buying ginger scented soaps and stuff, and using the root as a main ingredient when cooking. But, not too long ago, the scent of strawberries assaulted his nose when Takeru put the cake or pie or whatever in his face, sending his sense of smell into overdrive. Add to that, some of it actually got in his mouth.

“Shit, this is why I never wanted you to meet him! I knew something was fishy!” Toru hissed as he rubbed Taka’s back. “Fuck.” Then, he fished his phone out of his pockets and dialled Takeru’s number.

_“Hello? Toru?”_

“I need your help. Come to the bathroom, now.”

Toru didn’t even wait for an answer; instead, he ended the call, and returned his focus to Taka. He made a mental note to _never_ trust Takeru about “meeting up with Taka”. The very thing he wanted to avoid was coming true.

“Toru, I’m coming in.”

The door was pushed open and in came Takeru, his face looking like he’s seen a ghost. _Well, given how awful Taka looks right now…_ Toru thought to himself.

“What…?”

“Not now.” Toru threw his car keys to the man and said, “There’s a pack of ginger biscuits on the passenger side. Go get it.”

“Right.” Catching the keys, Takeru bolted out of the bathroom, passed their friends and went outside. And naturally, seeing what was happening and not getting any information left the others worried. So being the friends that they were, they headed to the bathroom, but when they heard the retching, they stopped dead in their tracks.

“Is he…?” Masato couldn’t even finish his sentence. After a moment of silence, they pushed the door open where they found Taka curled up in Toru’s arms with his body shaking violently.

“Toru…what’s wrong…?” MAH asked.

The group saw Toru sigh. “I’ll tell you later, right now he —”

“I’ve got the biscuits!” Takeru screeched as he pushed through.

“Good.” Toru said as he snatched the pack from the actor’s hands. He then aided Taka to his feet, and the two (along with everyone else) made it back out. While Taka was seated, he nibbled on the biscuits, trying to keep the queasiness under control.

 “So…do we really need to tell you to start?” MAH started, standing with his arms folded and tapping the floor like an impatient mother. “We’re all worried sick.”

“No…we just don’t know _how_ to tell you.” Toru replied. “It’s kinda —”

“I’m pregnant.” Taka blurted out without hitch.

A deafening silence befell the entire room as everyone stared wide-eyed at the couple. MAH opened his mouth to speak but nothing came out, Masato’s jaws seemed like they dropped through the floor, Rola only stared, Koie looked like he turned to stone. Toru almost chuckled given that the latter reminded him Gocchan when he first found out.

“You’re joking, right, Taka?” Takeru asked with a forced chuckle. “You are, right?”

“Yeah, you’re just fucking with us, right?” MAH asked. “You’re getting back at us for surprising you, huh?”

“No, I’m serious.”

“EH?!” came the unison screech. And given that there were three vocalists who were proficient with screamo in their songs, the volume was quite high.

“You…then…how…?” Rola stuttered, unable to form a sentence properly.  “How…did that happen?! Scratch that, is such a thing possible!?”

“We fucked.” Toru deadpanned. “And yes, it’s totally normal for him.”

“No it isn’t!” Taka visibly stiffened at that, remembering his father’s reaction. “Males can’t get ―wait, are you telling me that Taka had that mutated gene thing?!”

“Yeah.”

“Fffuuucccckkkk…” MAH and Masato dragged on in shock.

“So…So…So…” Koie couldn’t find the right words. With a deep breath, then said, “I’m sorry but I’m curious; are you gonna like, I don’t know, push them out when the time comes?”

There was a brief moment of silence.

“Good question.” Masato nodded. “Good question.”

Taka’s face reddened. “I’m not going to answer that!”

“Google the fucking thing if you’re that curious.” Toru said with a huff.

“Nah, I’ll risk seeing things that I never intended.” Koie said, twisting his face with disgust. “Hell no.”

"That won't be my fault, now will it?" Toru quipped. 

"No. But it'll be Taka's because he won't answer me."

"You bastard..." Taka said as he flashed him his middle finger. 

"Pot calling kettle black." Koie countered with a laugh. "What's up bastard?"

Taka gave up. This could go on forever with Koie and he hadn't the energy right now. 

...

After the shock subsided, everyone returned to a semblance of normal. Takeru had dragged Taka off somewhere before he and Toru had to leave, because the guitarist was adamant to “take Taka out of this atmosphere” and back home. Which meant, it left the guitarist to be swarmed by the others.

“So…are you really…” Takeru couldn’t even speak. “…I’m sorry I ruined your day or part of it…I didn’t…”

“Takeru, are you constipated?”

“What? No!”

“Then why are you talking like that?”

The actor looked away. “It’s just this is so sudden. I mean, seeing you collapse on stage and hearing your management say that you’ll be alright is one thing, but…to hear you say that you’re pregnant is another…” he trailed off. “…don’t get me wrong, I’m happy for you, but I just…it took me by surprise that I don’t know what to even think, let alone say!”

“Congratulations would be a nice start.” Taka shrugged.

“Taka…”

“What?”

“Don’t give me that. How would you react if I told you I was pregnant?”

Taka grinned. “I’d ask who the father is. _Then_ I’d congratulate you.”

Takeru twitched. “Nosy bastard.”

The vocalist laughed heartily before simmering down into small chuckles. Takeru noticed that he looked a bit distant here, and somewhat…hurt? There was definitely a pained look in Taka’s eyes and the actor wasn’t going to let this pass.

“Taka…are you alright?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

“But you seemed hurt…what’s wrong?”

“Dad.”

That one word was enough for Takeru to understand. “Oh.” But not wanting to dwell on this depressing mood, he said quickly, “Don’t worry, he’ll come around eventually. After all, who isn’t excited to have a grandchild?”

“Actually, I’m having twins.”

Takeru paused. “Eh?”

“You heard me. I’m not repeating myself.”

With a cheeky grin, Takeru grabbed Taka’s wrist and headed back into the room where everyone else was swarming Toru.

“Toru!” he called him out.

“What?”

“You sly bastard…” he grinned as he threw an arm around the guitarist’s neck, holding Taka on his other side. He looked at the group before him, “All you single and/or childless bastards…” he started. “…yes, I’m talking about you Masato, Koie and MAH especially.”

“What are you going on about now?” Koie asked.

“I’m not single. I’m married.” MAH countered.

“But you are a childless bastard like the rest of us.” Masato snickered.

“Take a page out of Toru’s book — _how to properly knock up your partner 101_ —”

“What the fuck?” Toru looked at him quizzically, Taka wanted to bust with laughter. “Where’d that come from?”

“This man knows how to _properly_ knock up someone.” Takeru continued, ignoring Toru. “Guess what, Taka is having twins. And if that's not properly knocking up your partner, then I don't know what is. So for more information, please contact Yamashita Toru.”

“No…” Masato gasped, covering his mouth while he was at it. He then walked over to the lead guitarist and smirked while nudging him in the sides, “You slick bastard. Not even one, but two?!”

"Talk about potent sperm, shit.” Koie joked.

“Now that’s what you call “two-for-one”." MAH teased. "Fucking greedy."

“Oi, oi! You all need to stop.” Toru tried to defend himself. “I don’t know how it happened. It just did.”

“Oh really now…?”

“Anyway, we need to be going! Bye!” Toru said as he scooped his beloved and dashed out the door with everyone trying to catch him.

“Since when had he gotten so fast?” Takeru asked.

“You can run!” Koie started.

“But we know where you live!” MAH added.

Before Toru actually got in the car, with a playful grin, he thrusts a middle finger in their direction and stuck his tongue out.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk…” MAH chuckled evilly. “…Toru has no idea what’s in store for them, right?”

“But to think that Taka was pregnant, with twins no less.” Koie started, “I’m shook.”

“I’m just hoping he’s having girls. That way I can dress them up like little dolls.” Rola cooed.

“Nope, they’re having boys. One vocalist and one lead guitarist.” Masato grinned. “I can see their future already.”

“You know, it’ll be nice if they got one of each.” Takeru said with an approving nod. “Although Toru’s gonna be fuck scary if he gets girls.” He shivered at the thought.

“For real.”

…

…

The couple reached home in due time, but what Taka didn’t know was that there was yet another surprise wanting for him. As soon as he opened their front door, confetti rained down on him with shouts of “Happy Birthday!”

Looking about the living room, he saw a huge banner which read “Happy 29th birthday Taka!” and before it was a table packed with gifts. Ryouta was there, Tomoya, Hiroki, Tomohiro and even Tsukihiko and Yoriko and Masako.

“What’s all this?”

“It’s for your birthday, duh!” Yoriko smiled. “We would have gotten tons of food but your nose is too dangerous right now.”

“Right you are, but…let me sit down first, I feel tired.” Taka said as he plopped himself into the sofa. “Today was eventful.”

“How so Taka-nii?!” Hiroki chirped as he took a seat beside his brother.

“Well…” Taka started with a yawn, “…we went to Ryotei…and…Takeru…” he yawned some more, “…and Masato…and…”

Taka never finished. Instead, his head found Hiroki’s shoulder and he was out cold.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading. So, I have no idea what the other bands are like, I have a vague idea of Masato, though, so if the guys are a bit OOC, forgive me. 
> 
> -And I used MAH's stage name because calling him "Manabu" would be too odd. 
> 
> -And I'm not sure if Kenta Koie is called Ken or Koie by others, so I just used Koie...


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

_“I was King...”_

—One Ok Rock _"I was King"_

…

Sitting on the front porch in the early morning was none other than Taka, gazing at the dark sky. The sun had yet to rise, but he didn’t mind. It was cool anyway. For some reason this morning, the vocalist had woken up and was unable to go back to sleep. He didn’t want to wake Toru, so he slid out of bed (after worming his way out of his guitarist’s secure arms) and ended up outside.

This peaceful atmosphere allowed his mind to wander.

Yesterday had been his birthday, and he was thrown _two_ surprise parties. However, he didn’t get to enjoy either of them because in one instance, his nausea flared up, having him stick his head down a toilet and for the other, he had fallen asleep before anything started. But, he noticed something that made his heart sink. His father has yet to wish him a Happy Birthday.

“How unfortunate.” He mumbled as he took his phone out of his pocket. Looking at the screen, he found that he had close to millions of messages on Instagram —

_Must be fans wishing me a Happy Birthday._

—and numerous missed calls and messages from close friends who had his number. And among these, there were some messages asking if he was alright, given that it’s been weeks now since he “collapsed” on stage.

Taka sighed.

As much as he wanted to reply to these messages, just the thought of it made him tired. As a matter of fact, everything makes him tired these days. Something as simple as going up the stairs is leaving him exhausted.

And he knew that it was only going to get worse. Gazing up at the star-studded night sky, a sigh escaped his lips unaware of the figure that stood behind him.  

“What are you doing out here?” a deep voice came from behind him. “Aren’t you afraid you’ll catch a cold?”

Taka jerked in surprise as he hadn’t heard when his lover had crept up. “Don’t scare me like that!” He started, grabbing the fabric at his chest. “…it’s April. I won’t catch a cold so easily.”

“But it’s still cold.” The guitarist said as he took a seat beside Taka on the porch. He threw a hand over the vocalist’s shoulders, prompting him to rest his head on his chest. The two remained like that for some minutes, enjoying the silence of each other’s company. Toru stroked Taka’s hair gently, unaware that he was lulling him to sleep.

“So Babe, since you haven’t spent your birthday properly, where do you want to—” Toru broke off as he realized that Taka wasn’t responding. “Babe?” he called yet again. Still no response. Tilting his head to look at Taka’s face, he saw that the vocalist was fast asleep.

The guitarist let out a sigh. “Damn, Taka. Why are you sleeping so much?”

…

…

By the time Taka woke up, he felt like he was fully rested, however, that feeling disappeared within a split second. The urge throw up was so overwhelming, that he almost mowed Toru off the bed as he dashed to the door. Sprinting towards the bathroom, once again, Taka emptied the contents of his stomach in the toilet, cursing this wretched feeling to hell.

He hated it.

He hated it so much.

“Babe?”

And like always, quick to the rescue, was his lover Toru. No matter how rough Taka was in getting to the bathroom, be it like this morning where he practically walked over the guitarist, or like other mornings where he tossed him aside like paper…Toru would _always_ show up with a towel, some ginger tea or something to help Taka.

“It’s okay. It’s going to be okay.” Toru said as he rubbed Taka’s back. As the guitarist looked as his petite lover, he couldn’t help but feel terrible. He couldn’t shake the feeling that this was his fault, and seeing Taka suffering was not his cup of tea.

When Taka was finally calming down a little, Toru left to brew some ginger tea for the vocalist as per usual his routine these days. By the time Toru returned upstairs, Taka was already brushing his teeth.

“Here.” Toru offered.

“Thanks.”

With just a couple of sips from the hot beverage, Taka was feeling a bit better, like the turmoil in his stomach was being calmed. He was itching for this to be over with, this relentless vomiting in the mornings were killing him.

“Feeling better?” Toru asked, holding Taka in an embrace.

“Yeah, for now at least.” Taka grumbled.

Toru chuckled, “Then, let’s go downstairs. There’s something there for you to see.”

…

Entering the living room, Taka noticed the amount of wrapped presents in the corner by the window. He then looked to Toru with a face of shock and surprise, which prompted the guitarist to answer:

“Well, it _was_ your birthday yesterday.” He shrugged. “And everyone left a gift for you.”

“Everyone?”

“Yeah, even Takeru and company had come along here but you had already fallen asleep, so I had to suffer through the teasing alone.” He mumbled the last part of the sentence but Taka still heard him.

With a chuckle, Taka left Toru walked over to where the presents were and looked through the names. Toru wasn’t lying when he said everyone he saw on that day —even those who he didn’t, like Gocchan, had left a gift for him. Searching through them more, he spotted a medium-sized gift, left by none other than his father.

A tear escaped his eyes as he thought that given how Shinichi basically disowned his babies; the man wouldn’t want anything to do with him. He was so happy to see a gift from his dad there.

“Taka, are you alright?”

“Yeah,” he sniffed. “Just these fucking hormones acting up.”

Toru said nothing more but placed a hand around Taka’s waist. He saw that the vocalist was looking at Shinichi’s gift and said, “You know, he came here in person, wanting to tell you happy birthday.”

“He did?”

“Yeah, but you were asleep. And he looked so down about it too.”

Taka frowned. “No need to rub it in. I can realize that.” Talking a seat, the vocalist decided to go through his gifts, starting with the two of the closest people in his life. Ryouta and Tomoya.

Their gift was huge and wrapped in a calm blue paper. Toru had seen it from yesterday, and he couldn’t shake the feeling that the two had actually bought Taka the cooking utensils.

Viciously ripping open the gift, what Taka saw erased the smile on his face. It was a complete baking set of cake decorations —pastry bags, piping tips, baking spatulas, cookie cutters, the whole nine yards. He then looked to Toru with a confused expression and all the guitarist could do was shrug.

However, there was a note at the bottom of the box, Taka deciding to read it out loud.

“ _Dear Mori-chan, Tomo-kun and I scoured your kitchen and found that you lacked these baking tools_.”

A chuckle escaped his lips as he could virtually imagine Ryouta’s voice while reading this.

“ _So we decided to buy these, because when the little ones come, they’re gonna want their cakes and cookies_.”

This time, the handwriting had changed, and so Taka thought this was Tomoya now.

“ _And you sure as hell can’t give them boring ass cakes and cookies to eat, ne? So with these, you can decorate all you want_.”

“Pfft!” Toru burst out laughing. “They really thought this through huh?”

“Yeah, I’m gonna bake all the cake and cookies they want.” Taka said somewhat absentmindedly, with a warm smile on his face. He rubbed his non-existent baby bump gingerly, a small laugh escaping his lips.

Toru paused and stared at his lover.

Then a myriad of images flooded his mind. He saw Taka, standing in their kitchen dressed in his apron and covered with flour and icing, meticulously squeezing colourful icing out of the bag and onto to a cake. He could hear his children’s voices happily chirping —singing something as they watch their mother busy himself with the pastry.

Without another word, Toru caught Taka in an embrace, after which he gave him a chaste kiss on his lips.

“Toru…what’s with the sudden…?”

“I remembered when you said that you think you aren’t going to be a good parent.” The guitarist started, making Taka stiffen. “But really, Takahiro, I believe that you’re going to be the best mother in the world.”

Taka returned the kiss with equal passion. “Thanks. But I’m not a mother. I’ll be the father.”

Toru froze. “Taka, need I remind you that _you’re_ the one calling _me_ “Daddy” every time we fuck? Or when you’re trying to seduce me? Hmm?”

The vocalist’s face reddened. “So…so what?! This and that are two different things!”

Toru wore a smug expression on his face. He knew he was right and no matter how Taka tried to argue and reason, he’d never win. But enough of that, now that Taka was wide awake, Toru wanted to carry him out somewhere for his birthday. He didn’t get to yesterday, and so the guitarist thought the quicker the better.

“Do you want to go anywhere?” Toru asked, changing the subject.

“Huh?”

“For your birthday. Do you want to go out? You never got to do anything and our reservation was for yesterday, so…”

“No…I just feel so lazy these days. Like I don’t have any energy.” Taka grumbled.

 “I see.” Toru replied, heading into the kitchen. But midway, he stopped and asked, “What do you want for breakfast? Anything in particular?”

Taka stopped. “I feel for chocolate.” He said. “And bananas.”

Toru looked unimpressed. “Babe, we _don’t have_ those. Plus, you can’t eat _that_ for breakfast.”

“But that’s what I want now.”

“Babe. No.”

Taka gave him a hard stare. “I. Want. Chocolate. And. Bananas!”

“Babe, really, you —”

“I can’t help it. I _really_ want it, Toru.” Taka said as he batted his lashes and whined. “And I want it now.”

Toru inwardly screamed. _So this is the famed pregnancy cravings huh?_ He remembered when Tsukihiko told him that he had to drive to the convenience store in the middle of the night just for a cup of jello. And the one time he didn’t, he was subjected to hell until he crawled out of bed and got the jello for Yoriko. And as such, Tsukihiko gave him one important piece of advice: _never deny your pregnant spouse of their cravings._

“Hai, hai, Your Majesty.”

“Toru, I’m not —”

“Says the guy who wrote “I was King”.” The guitarist laughed.

Taka smirked. “Then, if that’s the case I order you to get me chocolate and bananas! Defy me, and you’ll be sleeping on the couch.”

“Taka…”

Since Toru _loved_ to cuddle, Taka would often time use this threat to get what he wants. And for a fact, it isn’t just a threat, it’s a promise that he’ll never break.

“Hmm?” the vocalist replied with an innocent tone.

Toru resigned to his fate. “Which brand chocolate do you want?”

“Lindt, of course.”

Toru’s jaws dropped. “Babe, I’d have drive all the way to Shibuya for that! No way!”

Taka gave him a _look_ which made him stiffen from fright. “Am I not “Your Majesty”?” Taka’s face darkened here, giving Toru even more chills. “Yet you dare to tell me “No”? Get me what I ask for or else you’re sleeping with the crickets tonight.”

“Yes, Your Majesty. Forgive my insolence.” Toru said with a small bow. Taka grinned happily when he saw Toru take his car keys, headed to the vehicle and drove out.

“Have a safe trip~!” the vocalist sang with a smile.

But one thing was Toru’s mind: _the tyrant is back._

“I’m gonna die.”

…

…

Pulling over at the side of the road was a silver car, and when parked, out came an aged man, well dressed. He was Moriuchi Shinichi, and at the moment, he was heading to Masako because the two needed to _talk._

Ever since Toru spoke to him, Shinichi had a hard time coping. He loved his son, he adores him, but the fact that Taka was pregnant was a hard pill to swallow. This thought never crossed his mind, that Taka would one day fall in love with his guitarist and then have his baby. Or rather in this case, babies.

All of Taka’s life, Shinichi thought that his eldest son didn’t have the fêmea gene as when his boys were younger they had all took the test to find out. With the gene mutation being around for the past half century, families are encouraged to find out whether or not their sons or male charges have it. But Taka’s own had come back negative back then, while Hiroki’s was positive. So why was this happening?

Shinichi had even wanted to talk to Taka in private yesterday, but when he turned up at their house, the vocalist was sound asleep, much to his displeasure. So, now, Shinichi opted to speak with his ex-wife, hoping that maybe, just maybe some mutual understanding can come out of this.

He walked up to her doorstep and rang the bell, after which, she opened the door. With a small greeting, Masako let him in, and led him to her living room. While they might have divorced, there were neither hostile feelings nor awkward feelings, probably because it was so long ago or they’ve gotten over it.

“How have you been Masako?” Shinichi started.

“I’ve been fine.” She replied. “I’ve seen that you’ll be having a concert soon.”

Shinichi nodded. However, he changed the subject right after. “Masako, I…I want to talk to you about Takahiro.”

The enka singer raised her eyebrow. “It’s because of the pregnancy isn’t it?”

He nodded. “I just…I can’t see how their relationship works. I can’t.”

Masako traced an index around the mouth of the cup she had been drinking out of before he came. “At first, I couldn’t either. But as time went by, I noticed how happy Takahiro was with Toru-kun. Sure, just being with their band will make him joyous, but with Toru-kun I saw that he was jubilant.” She looked up to meet Shinichi’s worried gaze. “You see it too, don’t you? When they perform on stage…those little flirtatious gestures, were all signals for us to see, weren’t they?”

Shinichi looked away. “I know, but…I just can’t accept that Takahiro is in love with another man and is pregnant along with it.” He sighed. “He isn’t even married either. What’s going to happen when word gets out about this?”

Masako kept silent. Shinichi did have a point there, if somehow Japan finds out that Moriuchi Takahiro is pregnant, God knows what will happen to not only Taka but to One Ok Rock as a whole.

“There’s some truth to that, but Shin-kun, you need to accept this.” Masako said seriously. “This is Takahiro’s life, and if he’s happy, we should be happy that he is.” She continued, “I know it’s not the way either of us imagined it but Toru-kun is a good boy and would never do anything to hurt our boy.”

“You’re right about that,” Shinichi conceded, “Still…”

Masako chuckled lightly. “Look on the bright side; we’ll be grandparents to twins.”

Shinichi paused. “He’s having twins?”

“He didn’t tell you?”

“No…I might have said something that I shouldn’t and our conversation ended quite sourly. Although he said “babies”, he didn’t tell exactly how much he was carrying.”

“Shinichi-kun!” Masako gasped and rose to her feet.

“I didn’t mean it!” the man defended. He knew she was angry because Masako rarely ever calls him by his given name. “I was just so upset and shocked that I said…that I said…”

“Said what?”

“I rather not say.” Shinichi said with a downcast look. “It’s between me and Takahiro. Don’t worry, I planned on apologizing.”

Masako leaned back in her chair. While she knew of Shinichi’s take on same-sex relationships, seeing him this way —so conflicted, so _hurt,_ so _confused_ —was making her sorrowful. Although they had divorced, he was still a close friend of hers.

“All you have to do is talk with Takahiro.” She finally said softly. “I remember how deeply hurt he was when we divorced, so please, don’t hurt him anymore. He’s going to need you as he progresses, you know?” Seeing how silent Shinichi was, Masako continued, “Toru-kun won’t be enough, Ryouta-kun and Tomoya-kun will be able to do only so much, me too. But you Shin-kun, you’re the one he’s going to lean on because you’re his _father._ ”

“I know.” Shinichi nodded. “I know.” He then looked to floor and mumbled, “I just need some time.”

…

…

Close to an hour later, Toru returned home with Taka’s goods. As soon as the guitarist opened the door, Taka pounced on him, whining that the craving was becoming unbearable. After handing Taka the bags, Toru headed into the living room, leaving Taka to his own devices. The vocalist headed into the kitchen with the bags, humming a tune as he did so.

But Toru was curious. He thought that Taka would simply unwrap the chocolate and eat, but he’s heading into the kitchen. So, he asked, “Babe, what are you doing with the chocolate?”

“Melting it!” Taka replied.

Hearing that, Toru wondered what Taka was going to do. But, he didn’t say a word. These days, he left Taka up to his own devices, as given how sensitive he is right now, Toru knew he couldn’t manage a scream fest.

While Taka was in the kitchen, Toru scrolled through his phone, bored. There were a lot of posts and messages from worried fans about Taka, but he didn’t even imagine how they’d react if they found out that the vocalist was carrying his babies. So caught up he was, that he didn’t realize that Taka came and sat beside him.

The petite man placed a huge cup of milk on the table before them, which was what caught Toru’s attention. This was a suspicious act, given that Taka rarely drinks milk and when he does, it isn’t so much. Then, what happened next, made Toru almost vomit.

_Taka placed two slices of bread, buttered with chocolate on both sides topped with banana and pickles._

Toru nearly freaked out. This was not normal. This was not supposed to be happening. This was not _Taka._ His petite lover doesn’t eat pickles, he’s ate chocolate every now and then, but this…this was fucking disturbing.

“Ta-Ta-Taka,” Toru stuttered out.

“Hmm?” Taka asked with a mouthful. “Wash shi masha?”

“What’s the matter? What’s the matter?” Toru nearly shouted, being around Taka long enough, he could understand his “mouthful of food” speech. “That! What the hell are you eating!? That’s _disgusting!”_

Taka paused and looked at Toru without a care in the world. “Your point?”

“Babe, it’s fucking _nasty_. That’s my point.”

“But what am I supposed to do? I have a strong craving for this.” Of course, Taka had felt the same way like Toru did, but while he knew that the combination was quite odd, a part of him thought that it looked tasty.

“But to _spread_ the chocolate on bread and _then_ put bananas and pickles on it? Seriously?”

Taka shrugged. “I can’t help it.” He then grumbled. “And I don’t know what I did to deserve craving this evil.”

“Evil is right.”

Toru prayed to God that this was only for today although he knew that it was just the tip of the iceberg. Bread spread with chocolate and topped with bananas and _pickles?_ He’s never heard of such a disturbing thing before in his life.

…

…

The following week, Taka had his prenatal appointment.

At the outset, the petite vocalist was quite nervous, given that he didn’t know what to expect. But as the days passed by and his appointment came closer, the guitarist noticed that Taka was becoming more and more excited. Earlier this morning, Taka was in such a good mood simply because today is the day when they’ll know their babies’ (estimated) due date. According to Taka, he couldn’t wait to start counting down the days when he could eat strawberries again.

Toru himself was a little bit nervous, but for him, it was almost as though realism set in. He really was going to be a father. His mind drifted into what parenthood would be like, and for the life of him, he couldn’t imagine it. He’s heard stories from Tsukihiko —ranging from the sleepless nights to horrible diaper changes to awful tantrums to hearing their child saying her first word…Toru’s heard it all.

He wondered what their lives would be like once the babies were born, and he honestly couldn’t imagine it. One thing he was praying for, that neither of them inherited Taka’s sauciness. He doesn’t think he’d be able to manage three drama queens at the same time.

“No way, I’d be driven into insanity.” Toru groaned out aloud.

“Huh? What will?”

The guitarist jolted a little as he never heard when Taka came up to him.

“Ah, nothing, nothing.” He said quickly, jumping onto his feet from the sofa. “So let’s go shall we?”

Taka narrowed his eyes at his lover in suspicion. Given how Toru just suddenly spoke out loud and to no one in particular, the vocalist knew that he was thinking about something. But enough of that, there was a more pressing matter.

“Toru.” Taka called to get his attention. “We need to go shopping after this.”

“Hmm? What’s the…” he trailed off as he looked at Taka fully. “…matter?” with shock, he then asked, “Why aren’t you in jeans Taka?” For a fact, Taka was a man who loved his jeans, but right now, he donned black knee-length sweat shorts with his white t-shirt. 

“That’s the matter. They won’t fit.”

“What?!”

“They won’t go pass my thighs, Toru!” Taka screeched, sounding distressed. “I’m getting fat! I’ll turn into a whale!”

“You’re not getting…” Toru looked at Taka once again. It was true. In terms of his body Toru couldn’t really see due to the size of the shirt Taka wore, but in his cheeks…his cheeks were fatter and plumper than usual. Unable to control himself, Toru pinched the vocalist’s cheeks as though Taka was a fat and cute child that he couldn’t resist.

“You _are_ getting fat.” He absentmindedly gave out. “Well, given how much you eat these days…especially the chocolate and milk, it isn’t a surprise.”

Fascinated with Taka’s new cheek fat, Toru failed to realize the right hand that was making its way swiftly to his left cheek.

…

The drive to the doctor’s office was a quiet one, Taka silently fuming at what Toru said earlier. It wasn’t his fault that he was eating a lot more these days, if Toru hadn’t put the babies there then he wouldn’t be putting on the extra weight.

“Toru, remember that we’re going shopping after this.”

Toru only nodded. His cheek was still sore, so maybe talking would probably make the pain worse. But, he made a mental note to _never_ say a word about Taka’s weight. If someone else wants to, then he surely won’t stop them.

Given some more minutes and Toru finally reached the doctor’s office. Luckily, the time of day was perfect, so heavy traffic was absent, and strangely, the stoplights were all on green any time Toru neared.

After parking, the couple walked hand-in-hand (Toru wondering if Taka was shameless, given the hand-mark printed out on his cheek) up to the glass door where they entered the establishment. They then made their way to the receptionist, after which the young woman gave them directions as to where to find the office. Sitting in the waiting area, Toru was even more nervous than Taka.

“Calm down Toru!” Taka said as he jabbed him in his sides. “You’re so fidgety! The fuck’s wrong with you?”

“I can’t help it!” the guitarist replied holding onto his cheek.

“Hoh? So you’re gonna be like that for my future appointments too?” the vocalist asked with an eye roll.

“Tsch…” he clicked his tongue and turned his face away from his lover, “…No.” _But how can you talk so normally when you ruthlessly slapped me this morning?!_

Taka smirked. “Right…”

“Moriuchi Takahiro?”

The couple looked up at the nurse before following her to doctor’s office. The grey carpeted floor accentuated the lavender painted walls. Paintings hung off these walls, Toru saw one that was of safety pins, another of a couple flowers etc.

“Just take a seat, gentlemen.” The doctor said to them. He was of a small build with the typical Japanese look —black hair and dark eyes.  The reason for the doctor change, was simple; because Taka was carrying twins, they were advised to see a different doctor —a perinatologist—one who specialized in caring for multiples.

The two sat in the soft leather armchairs, Toru seeming even more nervous than before. Taka had to be using all his willpower to not burst out laughing.

“Are you Moriuchi-san?” the doctor asked as he looked at Taka with confused eyes. The vocalist nodded. “And…I don’t mean to sound offending but…you are a male right?”

Taka drew back, Toru looked at his lover because it seems like he wanted to spit fire. “Yes I am a male.” Taka said through partially gritted teeth. “Why do you ask?”

The doctor —Ebihara Takumi waved his hands in front of him in some sort of defence. “It’s just that you look really pretty so I was wondering if there had been a mistake on the file. Plus, you’re in a face mask.”

Taka looked absolutely mortified. The vocalist pulled down his mask and kept touching his face until he turned to Toru, “Do I look pretty?”

Toru froze. _Oh shit._

Yes, Taka really was pretty but given the context in which it was asked, if he said “yes” the vocalist would probably start screaming at him as to why Toru had allowed him to leave the house looking like “that”. And if he said “No”, then the doctor would _maybe_ draw for a mirror to prove his point correct. Or Taka may think that Toru is calling him ugly and start throwing a tantrum. Plus, given what happened today, he sure didn’t want another slap on his right cheek this time.

“You…”

As if realizing Toru’s distress, Ebihara then said, “Let’s get back on track, shall we?” he turned to Toru and asked, “Are you Yamashita-san? Or you’re just someone else accompanying Moriuchi-san?”

“No, I’m Yamashita.” Toru answered quickly. Thinking about that, Toru doesn’t think he’ll ever let anyone else come with Taka to his appointments. _Hell no_.

Ebihara then focused his attention back to Taka. “Why are you in a face mask? Are you ill?”

Taka shook his head. “Everything stinks. I can’t even enter my bathroom without heaving.”

Ebihara laughed. “Ah yes. It’s that time when your hormones are out of wack, giving you a superhuman sense of smell. You can’t use your favourite shampoo or your favourite soap…” he rattled off.

“Or cook! I can’t cook anymore because my kitchen smells like shit!” Taka added with a screech. “I’m so pissed!”

 _Although there’s nothing wrong with it._ Toru thought.

“I know the feeling.” Ebihara said with a nod. “But not being able to cook is the least of your problems. When I was at that stage, toothpaste tasted so awful, that I was vomiting while brushing my teeth. I had to scour the world and buy dozens of toothpaste before I found one that actually worked.”

Taka leaned forward with beaming eyes, “You had…?”

“Yup! Triplets.”

“Oh Fuck.” Taka and Toru ended up saying out of shock.

“Oh fuck is right.” Ebihara chuckled. Now that they’ve loosened up, the doctor started in a serious tone, “So from what I gather, Moriuchi-san, you’re now eight weeks pregnant with twins, and you only found out when you had collapsed after performing?”

“Yes.”

Ebihara slightly cringed. “That’s supposed to be scary.”

“It was fucking mortifying.” Toru grumbled.

“I can’t even imagine how you must’ve felt.” He said with a shake of the head. “But the good thing is everything fine now, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Great. Since this is your first appointment, we’ll head to the next room for your examination. Please bear in mind; this is going to take some time since I have to take measurements, blood tests, blood type…so many things.”

“Sure.”

“Alright, let’s go.”

…

The first thing that Ebihara did was measure Taka’s height and weight after which, he used the information calculate Taka’s BMI to determine the recommended weight gain for a healthy pregnancy. In addition to that, Taka’s blood pressure, heart rate and breathing rate were measured which the vocalist found quite irritating.

But this was not all.

Moving on from that, Ebihara did a blood test, so as to know the amount of haemoglobin —the iron-rich protein that allows red blood cells to carry oxygen around the body from the lungs, and also carbon dioxide _to_ the lungs to be exhaled. Ebihara also checked if Taka was exposed to various other infections since his medical history has proof that he was fully immunized.

But lastly, was Taka’s ultrasound. Although they could have done it at a later date, since Taka was carrying twins, Ebihara wanted to make sure that everything was fine. On that note, to say that the vocalist was excited was an understatement. Toru kept his excitement to a minimum, but there was a gleam, _a sparkle_ in the guitarist’s eyes that Taka knew he was just as excited as he was.

When everything was set up and after he placed the gel on Taka's tummy, Ebihara began.

“Well, since you’re just eight weeks, you won’t be able to see your babies much since they’re so small.” Ebihara started, “But…” he trailed off purposely when the sounds of beeping echoed in the room.

“What is that?” Taka asked when he heard the sounds. He looked to Toru who was as equally confused.

Ebihara smiled. “That, Moriuchi-san, are your babies’ heartbeats.”

Silence filled the room.

For a while neither of the two could say anything, instead, they looked at each other with shock.

“Wow, that’s cool.” Toru could only comment. He was so surprised and overwhelmed that he was rendered speechless. He was hearing his babies’ heartbeats. He was actually hearing their little heartbeats! Taka, on the hand, was shrieking all over the place in pure joy. He didn’t know if it was the hormones or what, but he was bubbling with joy.

Ebihara smiled at their reactions, given that he had experienced that as well. He let the transducer linger on Taka’s stomach, allowing the to-be parents to hear for a while longer. It was indeed a joyous moment for the two and without hitch, Toru pulled out his phone and of course, recorded the sounds.

…

Finally, Taka’s appointment was over.

He felt exhausted and all he did was lie on a bed and let Ebihara do what he was supposed to. But…one thing remained on his mind. Their babies’ due date. They were supposed to arrive on December 12 but he was told that as he progressed further; chances are that the date will change. After all, the first time was just an estimation and since men don’t have periods like women, there wasn’t _much_ to track from.

“So, since you’re new parents, there are a couple things that you need to know or rather, brace for.”

“Such as…?”

“Well, now that you’re in your eighth week, you’ll be experiencing lots of  things. Cravings, for one, will start to be more pronounced at this time.”

“Ah…he’s craving pickles, chocolate and banana.” Toru shivered with disgust. “It’s awful.”

“It’s your fault.” Taka countered.

“Oh. What Moriuchi-san is probably lacking is magnesium, sodium and potassium maybe.”

“Huh? What?”

Ebihara chuckled at their expressions. “While no one knows the reason pregnant people get cravings, one logical theory could be that your body is lacking nutrients for you and your baby. So, in order to get what it needs, you get these cravings. Although, what you think you crave for isn’t what your body actually needs.”

“What do you mean?”

“In your case, Moriuchi-san, your taste buds are telling you that you crave these foods. What your body needs are magnesium, sodium and potassium, but because you don’t know what these taste like individually, your taste buds are interpreting it as chocolate, pickles and banana.” Ebihara explained.

“Oh.”

“Yes, but you can’t always give in to these cravings. The banana and pickle are fine, but the chocolate…you can only indulge yourself once in a while.”

“But what am I supposed to if I crave it!?”

“Calm down. There are other alternatives for chocolate you know? Like nuts and—”

“I don’t want _nuts.”_

“It’s not what you _want_ , it’s what your body and your babies need, Moriuchi-san.”

Taka didn’t say anything more after that. He knew Ebihara was right, but he just never saw himself eating nuts.

“But, you can eat vegetables and fruits instead, since you don’t like nuts.” The doctor smiled. “I’ll give you a list so don’t worry.”

“In addition, you should be experiencing cramping at this time. It’s perfectly normal, but if it becomes too severe, Moriuchi-san…contact me _immediately.”_

“Okay,” Taka said with a nod. “What pisses me off is that I’m extra tired and nauseous. I have all-day sickness.”

“That’s perfectly normal for twins. You’re getting a double dose of everything.”

Taka glared at Toru. “You did this to me, you bastard.” He snarled.

“Taka, it takes two to make a baby.” Toru quipped.

“But it takes your dick to—”

Ebihara quickly cleared his throat. “Please don’t start.” He’s heard all about their tendency to announce their “activities” from Mikuni, and didn’t want to experience it firsthand.

 …

…

On the way back home, Taka was somewhat in a foul mood, given that he’s going to give birth in December. And it was _just_ April. There was another part of him that felt anxious and a little scared, but Toru offered a little reassurance.

They did ended up going shopping, and much to Taka's horror, he moved from a small to a medium. Toru found nothing wrong with this, but the vocalist was constantly freaking out about his added weight. Well, when Ebihara told him how much he was supposed to gain, Taka nearly had a heart attack.

"Babe, it's fine. You're overreacting." Toru said at one point, trying to soothe his lover.

"No I'm not. I swear, if you don't love me when I look like a whale, I'll kill you." Taka snapped.

Toru smiled at him. "I like whales. So even if you look like one, I'll still love you."

"Since when do you like whales anyway?"

"Since you said you're going to turn into one apparently."

Taka said nothing more after that.

Arriving home after their shopping, the couple noticed that their front door was unlocked and Toru knew — _was absolutely sure_ —that he’d locked it. But when they entered, they saw Ryouta and Tomoya, sitting leisurely in their sofa and watching TV like they owned the place.

“What are you two doing here?” Toru asked without even greeting them.

“What do you mean, Toru?” Ryouta started in a matter-of-factly tone. “We’re _always_ here.” When the couple sat beside him in the sofa, he then asked, “So how did it go?”

Taka perked up with sparkling eyes and a smile so bright that it’ll put the real sun to shame. “We heard their little heartbeats!” he practically screamed.

“Oh! You did?!” Tomoya asked, leaning forward with interest. “What did it sound like?!”

“Toru recorded it. He was so excited.”

Toru reddened with embarrassment. “So what?” he pulled out his phone and searched for the audio file, and played it for the others to hear. Ryouta and Tomoya giggled with joy and started to vocalize their imagination. The two were adamant about Taka’s babies becoming a drummer and bassist in the future and of course, Toru kept saying that his children will be anything they want —not necessarily musicians like him and Taka.

And that would prompt Tomoya to say, “What if they inherit Taka-chan’s voice?”

“It’s up to them to do what they want with it.” The guitarist replied, Taka only humming in agreement.

“On a different note,” Ryouta started, “Mori-chan, are you getting fat?”

Toru stiffened in shock at what just came out of Ryouta’s mouth. He looked to Taka who seemed fine, outwardly at least.

“Heh? Really?” Tomoya asked.

“Of course Tomo-kun! Look at his cheeks! They’re fuller!”

“For real…” The drummer started. “It reminds me of back in the day when —” he broke off when he heard Taka’s indignant screams of “Let me kill them”! It was then that they saw Toru firmly holding onto Taka by the waist, preventing him from killing them. 

“You have just royally pissed off Your Majesty.” Toru droned, but by now he miraculously managed to calm down the vocalist.

“Your Majesty?” Tomoya started with a chuckle. “So what are you Toru? The Knight in Shining Armour?” He erupted in full blown laughter at this.

Ryouta doubled over as his imagination ran wild, “Imagine, Toru in silver armour, riding on a white horse to Mori-chan who’s in a puffy princess dress with a tiara on his head, trapped in a tower!” He howled with laughter as his eyes watered, Tomoya reaching to the floor as he guffawed.

Taka folded his arms and glared at them darkly. “You have until I count to five.”

“Taka-chan, we were just joking, you know?”

“One…”

“Come on Mori-chan we —”

“Five!”

“Hey! What kind of counting is that?!” Tomoya shrieked as he jumped over the sofa and ran to the stairs. “I was not ready!”

Ryouta headed to the window but sadly, it was locked. Taka closed in on him like a predator on its cornered prey, the poor bassist fretting for his life. Toru didn’t do anything; instead he watched what Taka would have done. Plus, they caused it on themselves.

“Any last request?” Taka asked menacingly.

“Yes…” Ryouta said in a squeak. “…at least let me taste your cooking for one last time?”

“Die.”

Without a care, Toru scrolled through his phone, completely ignoring the screams of horror coming from behind him. Tomoya was next, and honestly, seeing his fellow bandmates suffer at the hands of Taka because of their own ignorance was strangely satisfying.

“Well, given that he nearly murdered my cheek this morning.” The guitarist ended up grumbling aloud.

Silence followed for a couple seconds before Taka asked, “What was that Toru?”

He looked up to his lover with the calmest face he could muster and replied, “I was talking to myself, wondering what I should cook for you today.”

And no, Toru totally wasn’t ignoring a seemingly dead Ryouta lying beneath Taka.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!


	10. Chapter 10

_"Just wanna be with you_

_Only you_

_Always you"_

_—_ One Ok Rock _"All Mine"_

 

_..._

 

"Mori-chan!" Ryouta shrieked as he sauntered in their home with a bright smile on his face. "How are you doing~?" He added in a sing-song voice. But he didn't get an answer. The house was eerily quiet, something that only happened whenever the couple had gone out...or were sleeping. But given the time of day, there's no way they could be sleeping at this time —four o'clock in the afternoon.

"They're not at home?" the bassist asked himself. He navigated his way to the kitchen, he saw no one. He looked in the living room, he saw no one. With a sigh, he plopped himself down on the sofa, and turned the TV on. Tomoya was coming as well, but he had to make a stop first.

His mind then ran on this whole situation.

He was going to be an uncle to twins. At first, he was shocked because the thought that maybe Taka could have children hadn't crossed their minds. But when everything settled, he was thrilled. He'd get to spoil them, he'd get to take them out to amusement parks, teach them, — _well maybe just one of them_ — how to play the bass...

Ryouta couldn't wait.

But then, his mind drifted on how the public will react. If they found out that Taka's pregnant — _with_ _Toru's twins to be exact_ —what's going to happen to them? To the band? While it isn't unknown to the four that Taka and Toru are "shipped" by many fans across the globe, Ryouta couldn't help but worry for the ones who didn't. And knowing Taka, he'd want to spam Instagram with pictures of his babies, but...

"I wonder what they'll name them." The bassist mumbled to himself, trailing onto a more lighter subject. While it was no secret to everyone that Hiroki was adamant that one of them should be named "Hiroyuki" — _Ryouta had to admit, the meaning of the name was pretty beautiful_ —the bassist had to wonder what name or names they — _Toru especially_ — had in mind.

Suddenly, he's found himself going through a list of kanji that could be combined to make a name. He found himself bursting out with full blown laughter, but truly, he couldn't help but wonder what Taka will name either of them. The vocalist's naming sense isn't the best there is, remembering the initial names of some of their past songs, then definitely, Taka's naming sense is pretty wack.

Soon enough, he heard their front door open and he prayed that would either Toru or Tomoya. The gods seem to favourite him this time as _both_ men walked through the door.

"Ryouta?" Toru asked upon seeing the bassist extremely comfortable in his sofa.

"Yo! I don't think you should be surprised." Ryouta grinned. "This is a natural occurrence right?"

Tomoya burst with laughter as he made his way to the bassist. Toru on the other hand, headed into the kitchen with the grocery bags and ordered the contents in the fridge. When he was done, he joined the other two in the living room.

"So, how's he?" Tomoya asked.

Toru paused. "He's fine."

"I hear a "but" emerging in that sentence." Ryouta said.

"His cravings are abnormal. I'm terrified." Toru shivered and cringed subconsciously. Tomoya and Ryouta exchanged worried glances. If Toru says he's terrified, then that sure means that whatever it is, is serious shit.

"Terrified how?" the drummer questioned.

"You don't want to know." the guitarist warned. "You really don't want to."

"So where's he now?"

"Asleep."

"Is it just me, or is Mori-chan sleeping a lot more these days?" Ryouta asked. "Every time I ask, Toru always tells me he's asleep."

"It's normal, the doctor says." Toru shrugged. "He's —" he broke off, abruptly standing up as though he remembered something important.

"Toru?"

"Taka's awake."

Without a word to the others, he headed up the stairs to his bedroom and entered. There Taka was, sitting up in bed and stretching. His curled locks were sticking up in various directions, his face was still sleepy, and Toru found it cute. He walked slowly over to the bed and planted a kiss on Taka's forehead.

"You're finally awake."

"Shut up." the vocalist yawned as he leaned in onto Toru's shoulder. "I'm still sleepy."

"How?"

"I don't know. I just feel like my energy is being sapped out of me."

"Don't worry, it'll pass."

"Toru...I'm hungry."

"Okay, what do you want? That doesn't involve your cravings."

"Anything...no fish. I'll definitely throw up."

"As you wish, Your Majesty."

Meanwhile, Tomoya and Ryouta looked at each other with shock and confusion. There's no way, Toru, who's one floor below Taka could know that the petite vocalist had woken up. It isn't like he made a racket or something.

"Do you think it's ESP?" Ryouta asked Tomoya, his face had taken on a serious expression.

"Possibly. But this is serious." the drummer said, leaning forwards and resting both elbows on his knees. "But maybe Toru developed a seventh sense or something."

"Seventh sense?"

"Yeah, because the sixth sense is debatable it being "common sense" or the "sense to perceive dead people". Frankly, I believe it's the former."

"Still, isn't that just creepy stalker-like behaviour? I mean, for someone to know _when_ another person is awake, then..."

"I see someone's forgotten how Taka-chan joined the band." Tomoya grinned. "Stalkinesis at its best!" The drummer howled with laughter. Adding —inesis to the end of "stalk" he thought that he was creating a name for Toru's "superpower" or ESP they had deduced earlier.

"Right you are, bro. Right you are." Ryouta joined with an even louder guffaw.

The couple soon returned downstairs, and as soon as Ryouta and Tomoya spotted Taka, their faces brightened with mischief.

"How are the little ones?" they asked playfully. But underneath the playful guise, they really meant well.

Taka smiled as he sat beside Tomoya. "They're fine."

"Look at his face!" the bassist and drummer shrieked in delight. Toru had already gone into the kitchen, but he could hear them as clear as day.

"What's wrong with my face, huh?!"

"You have this motherly smile that it's —" Tomoya broke off as he saw the glare that he was receiving from the vocalist. "So...uh..."

"Are you going to have another after these two?" Ryouta quickly asked to change the subject.

Taka looked distraught. "Absolutely not! I can't eat strawberries! Or sushi! I can't even cook in my own kitchen! I wake up every morning with this terrible nausea and have to stick my head down the fucking toilet and you're asking me if I'm going have another child after these two are born?!" Taka shrieked. "Are you fucking nuts?"

Tomoya and Ryouta exchanged glances. While they knew about certain pregnancy hormones, they never knew that Taka had it _this_ rough. They felt sorry for their vocalist, and they knew that there were worse days to come.

"I...see..." Ryouta uttered out. "But anyway, it's too early to ask. I've heard that people always reject the idea of having a second child but later on, they actually do."

"Well, I'm not "people", I'm Moriuchi Takahiro." Taka huffed. "And believe me, I'm not going through this again."

"We shall see." Tomoya grinned.

Taka has never felt the urge to strangle someone so strongly before.

...

Dinner was quite the handful.

Ryouta and Tomoya were nearly killed, given that they commented on Taka's eating volume and his weight. These days, the vocalist was quite sensitive, anything could piss him off or make him burst out into full blown tears. As for Toru, he sat back and watched it all go down, but only cared for Taka's well-being. As soon as he sees the vocalist exerting himself too much, Toru was quick to restrain him.

And after everything was done, the four settled in the living room, boredom kicking in.

"I feel like stretching my legs. I need to go out." Taka mumbled.

"Finally! Let's go fishing!" Ryouta nearly screamed, as though he had been waiting for Taka to say something like that. "Being cooped up in the house isn't healthy!"

"No! Let's go somewhere else! Like the beach!" Tomoya argued.

"Or let's not go anywhere there are fishes. The raw scent will definitely make Taka uncomfortable." Toru rejected firmly.

Taka looked at the debating three in disbelief. He just wanted to get out, probably take a stroll in the neighbourhood or something, but they were going all out. Beach? Fishing? Movies? What the hell?

"Guys, I was just thinking of taking a simple walk. Not going anywhere special or where there's a shit ton of people."

"Depending on the beach, there isn't a shit ton of people." Tomoya said.

"And depending on the river, there isn't a shit ton of people either." Ryouta added.

"And as I said before, we're not going where there are fishes!" Toru reasoned.

"Fine. I'm going back to bed."

 _"No!"_ The three screamed.

"Then quit your bitching and listen to me." Taka snapped. "We're walking in the neighbourhood and that's final. If you fuckers don't want to come, I'm fully capable of going by myself."

"Yes Your Majesty." the three gave out with playful grins.

Taka glared at them before he returned upstairs to get changed. Within a couple minutes, he was fully dressed in jeans and a t-shirt.

"Have fun now, you two." Ryouta cooed while making a heart with his fingers. Tomoya was beside him puckering his lips and batting his lashes at them.

"Wait, you're not coming?" Taka asked.

"This is supposed to be a romantic walk in the evening between you two! We can't third wheel —"

"Or fourth wheel." Tomoya added.

"—your time together." the bassist continued as though he wasn't interrupted. "We can _always_ go fishing when you get better."

"Or to the beach." Tomoya grinned.

"Hmm...suit yourself." Taka shrugged. "It was just a walk though, it wasn't going to be romantic. No cherry blossoms around you know."

"Taka-chan, Taka-chan, Taka-chan..." Tomoya started, sounding like he was building up to something. "Just go. Toru is waiting."

Said guitarist was leaning on the doorjamb with his back turned to the three. He seemed to be gazing at the sky, they'll never know.

"Let's go Toru!" Taka perked as he grabbed onto Toru's upper arm and pulled him out.

Exiting their home and stepping out into the cool fresh air, Toru and Taka walked slowly down the pavement, with fingers entwined. And although neither said a word for a couple minutes, just being in each other's presence without distractions felt like all their worries were melting away.

It was peaceful, somewhat reminiscent of the — _somewhat carefree—_ times when they didn't have to worry about too many things. But now, as the days and weeks go by, both knew that they'd have to be extra careful if they didn't want the entire world finding out about the pregnancy. 

Still, they knew that there will be some who would be so happy for them they might seem a little hysteric; there will be some who would be disgusted and throw hate and slander, and there will be some who just "didn't care". They've met the latter type before, these people commented that "as long as One Ok Rock continues to make music that I like, I couldn't give a flying fuck what they wanted to do". 

But for some reason, Toru felt as though the haters will more likely stick out like sore thumbs. He knew Taka long enough to know that the smaller man is mentally strong enough to withstand all those hate, but for how long? Surely, everyone will have a breaking point and if it's shown in their album sales, etc. that people hate them, Taka is going to believe it's his fault.

 _That_ is what Toru doesn't want.

Taka deserves so much more. Toru would have given him the world if he had to, but that's not possible.

"...ru...Toru!"

The guitarist was pulled back to reality by Taka, who upon looking at his face, seemed a bit upset. "Hai?"

"You weren't listening, were you?"

"Sorry, I was just lost in thought."

"Hmm?" Taka hummed. "About what?"

"I rather not spoil our walk."

A small smile graced Taka's face. He then stopped and turned to face Toru. "I have a feeling of what it is." He said as he snaked his arms around his lover's neck. "And I'm sure that our little secret won't be known to the whole world."

"I hope so."

Taka laughed, more like, _giggled._

It wasn't his usual rambunctious outburst that had a tendency to shake the earth but this was more controlled and subtle. The vocalist hid his face in Toru's chest as he continued in his fit.

"What's so funny?" Toru asked.

"It's your face. Your expression was classic."

Toru rolled his eyes before caressing Taka's cheek with his thumb. This silenced the vocalist, leaning into Toru's touch.

Toru then planted a chaste kiss on Taka's lips —no groping, no gasping, no frantic twist of the head with lips crushing. But instead, it was the most endearing and sensuous kiss Taka had ever gotten. After breaking apart, Taka gazed up at Toru with mesmerized eyes. His heart felt like it was beating out of his chest, his breathing was erratic.

"Taka...are you alright?" Toru asked with worry.

"Yeah...it's just that...it was fantastic..."

Toru grinned. "There's plenty more where that came from."

"Are we supposed to be doing this out in the open? What if someone sees us?"

"There are no parked cars, believe me, I checked."

"But...but..."

Before the vocalist could argue, he was pulled into an embrace, full of warmth and comfort. They stayed like that for a couple minutes before moving off again. They had no idea where they were walking to, but given that the neighbourhood was quiet, there was no sense of panic that they'll run into fans or paparazzi. 

It was just them and no one else.

They talked, they laughed, they reminisced, they even joked about their babies' future names. After seeing the time darkening, Toru decided to head back, much to Taka's displeasure. The smaller man was enjoying himself far too much to remember that he needed to rest.

But on the way back, Toru noticed something about Taka. His hair has gotten longer.

In the cool breeze, Taka's curled locks swayed to and fro, the vocalist having to push is hair behind his ear. Toru's eyes was locked onto him and subconsciously, the guitarist pulled out his phone and snapped a couple pictures without Taka knowing. But then he realized that he hadn't taken any pictures since Taka got pregnant.

"Taka,"

"Hmm?" the vocalist replied in a sing-song voice.

"I want to take a picture."

"Okay!" Taka perked as he skipped towards the nearest street light. One for sure, Moriuchi Takahiro _loved_ the camera. He was always taking pictures, or videos of the silliest things —his Instagram is proof of that. Out of the four, he has the most posts. The vocalist soon leaned his right shoulder onto the pole, and made a peace sign with both his hands. With a smile, Toru took the photo — _or rather, photos—_ of his lover by the streetlight.

"Taka, lift your shirt up."

"What? Lift my —" but the vocalist soon realize what Toru meant. "—oh." he added. "But there isn't even a bump yet."

"I don't care." Toru deadpanned. "Have to start from somewhere, right?"

So, Taka did as he was told and turned sideways to the camera with his shirt up. Yet with another smile, Toru snapped a couple pictures, finally stopping when he racked up quite the few photos.

Then, they continued their trek back home, the tiredness really settling in on Taka. But even so, the vocalist managed to keep their walk entertaining by doing what he does second best —talking.

"You know, it's kinda hard to believe that we'll be parents." he started. "To our _own_ children."

Toru hummed. He wasn't going to forget the day when Taka found in the hospital and completely lost it. "I know. It was pretty surprising."

"Are you...happy?"

"What kind of question is that? Of course." Toru chuckled. "At first, I was completely shocked, yes. But when everything settled out, trust me, Hiroki had nothing on me when it comes onto happiness."

Now it was Taka's turn to laugh. He doubled over while cracking up, even having to wipe a tear from the corner of his eyes. "I have to tell Hiro this." he laughed. In fact, Hiroki, Ryouta and Tomoya seemed like the ones who were ecstatic about the pregnancy than everyone else.

Coming out of his fit, Taka then said, "Ryouta asked me if I was having another one after these two."

Toru stiffened. There's no way he'd let Taka go through that hell ever again. "And what did you say?"

"I flatly denied." the vocalist said with a slight chuckle. "These two should be enough and frankly, I'm already uncomfortable, I can't even imagine what the coming months will be like." he said. "So having another one is definitely not on my to-do list."

Toru sighed in relief. While this is a time where family and friends are supposed to celebrate and all that fancy stuff, the one pregnant goes through a lot, far too much for too long. Nine months —forty weeks —two hundred and eighty days, _that_ is terrifying.

"Well, I'm curious to see who they'll look like." Toru said. "And what their gender is going to be."

"Hmm...if they get your eyes, I'm going to cry. And I really don't care about their gender. As long as their born safely." But Taka felt a bit teasing. "What? Do you want girls or something?"

"Pfft. No way." Toru shook his head. "I'd rather boys that way, I won't have to be walking around with a katana to chase away every filthy bastard who laid their eyes on our daughters."

The corner's of Taka's lips curled as he fought hard to resist, but it was no use. He roared with laughter, clutching his arms and bending over. His shoulder shook violently the more he laughed, but Toru didn't mind. Taka's laughter was like a drug —a drug that Toru had gotten addicted to a long time ago.

For the vocalist, he imagined Toru with the weapon chasing boys down this very street. He imagined their daughters running to their daddy, whining and complaining about whatever boy problems they had. Which would definitely prompt the guitarist to head out and slaughter.

Still, Taka knew that Toru would be a wonderful father.

"You've been laughing at me a lot, Taka." Toru pouted. "It's not fair."

"It's not my fault I find you amusing." The vocalist grinned. "But, I'm glad that I have you by my side. I'm sure you'll make a great father."

Snaking an arm around Taka's waist, Toru pulled his lover closer and kissed him on his temple. "And you'll be a great mother."

...

By the time they reached home, Taka was struggling to keep on his feet due to sleep and fatigue taking him over. Ryouta and Tomoya laughed at Toru who was struggling to carry his lover, before they assisted their leader and opened the bedroom door for him.

"Rest well." Toru uttered before planting a kiss on Taka's forehead.


	11. Chapter 11

_"I just want you, baby"_  
  
—One Ok Rock _"Wherever You Are"_

_..._

 

So far, thanks to their management, the news of One Ok Rock's Taka collapsing on stage became old. While there were some who still worried, given the statement issued by Amuse, the band was off the public's radar...for now. The whole fuss has calmed down a bit, with the entertainment news focusing on other things —like musicians who're going on tours, or releasing new albums etc.

Taka was relieved to see this, for once the first thing that he saw on his TV wasn't about him. He cuddled within Toru's arms, resting his head on his lover's chest. The couple were in their bedroom, and hadn't moved from their bed since they woke up. Thankfully, Taka's nausea hasn't acted up yet, so for the very first time, in a very long time, the two could cuddle in the mornings for as long as they wanted. And Toru was a man who absolutely _loved_ to spoon his precious vocalist in the mornings.

Toru played in Taka's hair, all the while looking at the smaller man nestled on his chest. Taka looked so peaceful and so beautiful, especially now that his hair was growing out, quite rapidly too. He had noticed it when they had their evening walk the other day, and soon wondered if Taka wasn't going to cut it. But then again, it could be quite amusing to see what his lover would look like with long hair.

"Is there anything you want for breakfast?" the guitarist then asked when his eyes trailed up to the mounted clock.

"Hmm... I want —"

"Your crazy cravings don't count."

"Toru!" the vocalist huffed, elbowing Toru in his side, causing him to howl out in pain. "I want that ginger rice thing you made way back. It tasted really good."

"I..." Toru gasped out in pain. "...yeah, I'll do that."

"Good boy!" And in that instant, Taka returned to his resting place on Toru's chest. The vocalist seemed as though he hadn't planned on moving anytime soon, because he was quite comfortable.

"So, Taka, aren't you going to get up?"

"Your chest is fucking comfy. Leave me alone."

Toru said nothing more. For some more minutes the two lay there, but unbeknownst to Toru, the vocalist had fallen asleep while listening to his heartbeat. It was when he asked a question and Taka hadn't even budged, that he realized the vocalist was asleep. Slowly and stealthily, Toru placed Taka on the pillows and slipped out of the room, tiptoeing like a trespassing thief. 

He headed to the bathroom, brushed his teeth and took a quick shower before he went downstairs to the kitchen to prepare breakfast. He quickly went to work, humming a tune as he did so. He was engrossed in his thoughts that he hadn't realized how fast the time flew and that Taka had woken up. His "Stalkinesis" as Tomoya had so put it seemed to be not working at this moment.

"Hmm...so this is where you went." Taka said as he stood at a distance from the kitchen.

"Yeah. You'd be hungry when you wake up so I thought I'd prepare everything beforehand."

"Thoughtful, but I would rather if I woke up I saw your huge eyes gawking at me like the stalker you are."

Toru didn't know how to counter that one. Was this his way of saying "next time stay with me"? If it is, he should definitely rephrase.

"Next time I'll do that then." the guitarist said with a hum.

"Thank you~" Taka said, planting a kiss on Toru's cheek while he was at it. Said man was momentarily surprised as he hadn't heard when Taka had walked up to him. The vocalist then sauntered his way into the living room, where he sat and watched the TV. But, he was currently bored. He wanted to go to the studio, he wanted to sing; he wanted to make some music. Being cooped up in the house was not doing any him any justice. But at the same time, even if he goes out, he'd be so exhausted as soon as he starts.

It happened the last time when they decided to take a walk the evening, and on the way back, Toru had to be partially carrying him as he was so tired he couldn't stand up properly. Soon, an aromatic smell wafted through the air, the vocalist immediately started drooling.

Toru brought the dishes out and placed them on the table before beckoning to the drooling vocalist who seemed to be drunk on the aroma.

"Breakfast is served, Your Majesty." Toru said as he pulled out a chair for his beloved. 

"Itadakimasu!" Taka grinned at him, showing off his perfect set of teeth.

...

 

After breakfast, while Toru went to wash the dishes, Taka decided to take a cold shower as according to him, he was feeling a bit hot. Toru wanted to check if he was coming down with the fever, but as usual, his lover was adamant that he was not sick. The guitarist took his time cleaning up, given that he was thinking of where he could take Taka. He knew deep down that the vocalist must be bored being in the house all the way, but with his "morning sickness", even going into a simple music store would probably set him off.

"Maybe we should just go for an evening walk like the last time." he mused. He was tired of this, being that he couldn't Taka out because of the wretched feeling. Ebihara had told them that it'll end around twelve or fourteen weeks, but really, Toru felt like it's taking forever.

With a sigh, he placed the last dish in the dryer, and headed to sit in the sofa. He stretched out his legs in the furniture and not long after, he closed his eyes in thought. He wondered what his babies would look like, but he prayed that they'd get Taka's eyes. The small man had the brightest pair of eyes he'd ever seen and he'll never get tired of looking in those beautiful orbs.

Suddenly, he got up out of his comfort. "What's taking Taka so long?" Worried, Toru dashed up the stairs to the bathroom.

...

...

 

Taka stepped out of the shower and the proceeded to wrap his dripping hair with the towel. After, he covered his lower half of his body as well, but he stopped and paused a while. He stared at his stomach before placing a hand there. It felt stiff these days, the realization of him actually pregnant got realer and realer everyday. A smile graced his face as he hugged his stomach.

"I can't wait to meet you both."

Just then, the door swung open, revealing Toru who had a concerned look on his face.

"What?" Taka asked, still cradling his stomach.

"You were taking longer than usual so I thought I'd come check on you." The guitarist said as he made his way over to the vocalist. He cupped Taka's cheeks before planting a kiss on his wonderful and said in a sultry tone, "There's nothing wrong with that, right?"

Hearing Toru's voice ignited something within Taka, the vocalist finding himself wrapping his hands around Toru's nape and said, "Fuck me, _now."_ In a most frightening tone.

Toru's shock lasted for only a split second before he grabbed the towel around Taka's waist and threw it aside. He captured Taka's lips and were engaged in a passionate kissing session that was leaving the vocalist weak in the knees.

Trailing a hand down Taka's thighs, Toru brought the vocalist's leg up to his waist which prompted the smaller male to put up his other foot which Toru caught on instinct, hoisting his beloved upwards.

Toru then moved to the wall, so that Taka could rest his back against it. They deepened their kiss even more, the guitarist seeming as though he wanted to devour every piece of Taka. Toru then trailed his tongue to Taka's neck then down to his chest. He circled his tongue around Taka's nipple earning him a sensual moan from the vocalist. This was music to Toru's ears. He then took the nub and sucked on it gently; Taka gasping out loud at this.

"To...ru..." Taka felt like he was overheating. With every touch, there was an explosion of pleasure that threatened to drive him insane. Using his legs, Taka started to push down Toru's shorts and this earned him a smug look from the guitarist.

"Impatient, aren't we?" Toru whispered into the vocalist's ear, his voice laced with lust and wanton. He peppered the small man with fiery kisses, Taka grabbing into his hair, seeming to want to rip it out.

_Then suddenly,_ Toru pushed a finger into his being, Taka gasping out at the action but nearly screamed when he inserted another. Taka's small hands dug into the man's shoulder, back arching from the pleasure. Toru stretched his fingers wide inside Taka, almost like a scissors preparing the man for what's to come.

"Toru...you fucking...tease..." Taka whimpered all the while trying his best to push down Toru's  shorts with his feet. It was becoming effective, until Toru decided to make things easier. With swift movements, Toru nearly tore his shorts off, took hold of his member and positioned it at the smaller man's entrance. With a gentle thrust, he entered Taka slowly, the vocalist letting out a melodic "Ahhh..."

Seeing that his lover was enjoying it, Toru pulled back and pushed forwards gently at a pace which was exactly what the vocalist wanted at the moment.

Moving his hips, Taka matched Toru's rhythm perfectly, eliciting a smirk from the bleached blond. The guitarist then began to thrust faster and faster and with every movement, Taka squirmed with pleasure.

"Fuck! Toru!" Taka screamed, unable to contain his voice any longer.

"Is...everything...alright?" Toru panted, fretting that he may have unintentionally hurt the vocalist.

"Yes!" Taka shrieked. "Don't fucking stop!"

_Oh._ Toru grinned. "As you wish, Your Majesty."

Taking hold of one of the vocalist's legs, Toru re-entered his lover, and gradually increased the pace of his thrusts to match Taka's needs. 

As for Taka, he had no idea of the reason he was extremely sensitive but whatever the case, he didn't mind. His body spasmed and shook with pleasure, and the _deeper_ Toru went, the louder he _cried out_ in ecstasy. Toru took him to the top, making him feel as though he was on cloud nine.

"I—I—I'm —!" Taka couldn't complete his sentence as the throes of pleasure overtook him. But being around Taka for so long, Toru knew _exactly_ what he wanted to say.

"Let's come together, shall we?" Toru whispered in Taka's ears as he took hold of the vocalist's hardened member. Unable to answer, Taka only nodded rather vigorously. Swiftly and smoothly, Toru flipped Taka over and bent him over the mounted bathroom vanity. He placed Taka's foot up on the furniture, continued to pound mercilessly into Taka. And once again, Toru was glad for Taka's unbelievable flexibility. Positions like these were nothing for the vocalist.

Taka screamed wildly, feeling his insides turning to mush. Toru filled him all the way, coupled with the guitarist pumping his member, Taka's sanity was drifting. On the other hand, there was only one thing on Toru's mind —fucking Taka senseless. And that he did. Deeper and deeper he went, Taka crying out louder and louder each time. The vocalist screamed Toru's name at the top of his lungs, whilst the bleached blond guitarist was drowning with the feeling of fucking his beloved Takahiro.

They released together, Toru keeping Taka up as the vocalist was worn out. Add to that, Taka was pregnant and was always tired so Toru felt that he must be practically exhausted now.

Scooping him up bridal style, Toru carried him over to the tub where the two then took a bath together.

"I love you, Takahiro." Toru whispered in his ear.

"I love you too, Toru." the vocalist said, giving Toru a peck on his lips.

...

...

 

After their bath, the couple headed to the living room because Taka felt like singing. The vocalist practically bounced his way downstairs, watching him, Toru wondered how could he have so much energy? He's always complaining that he felt tired and fatigued but after their escapade in the bathroom, Taka dragged Toru back to their bedroom and mounted himself onto the guitarist.

The following sequence of events left Toru mind-blown and with Taka being so overly sensitive now, the smaller man came so much that he nearly passed out. But, it was a great way to start the day.

And contrary to popular belief that Toru was the wild animal (in a way he was) in bed, Taka was the real monster. Once the vocalist gets into his groove — _more like after Toru stirred him up in round 1_ —his inner monster surfaces, Toru wondering sometimes if Taka wanted to break his dick. But still, he doesn't mind, nope, not one bit. 

Toru went for his guitar in another room and before he could even sit down in the sofa next to his lover, he started to randomly play. The first song he played was "Cry Out", Taka joining in at the right moment, but sang the wrong lyric. Toru cracked with laughter but continued to play until the vocalist finally got it right.

"No fair! You just suddenly started playing and didn't tell me what the song was!" Taka shrieked, trying to defend himself.

"You're the one who wrote it, so you should remember it, right?"

"We have eight albums, Toru. That's a lot of lyrics I gotta remember." Taka deadpanned.

"We have eight albums, Taka. That's a lot of musical arrangements I gotta remember." Toru countered smoothly.

The vocalist said nothing more. He knew Toru was right, and as much as people thought being a vocalist was the hardest job, Taka would gladly deny that. All he had to do was remember song lyrics and _how_ to sing each song. But for the instrumentalists, they had a shit ton of things to remember, riffs, chords, all sorts technical things. And God knows how he thanked the others for their hard work each and every day, each and every performance that they did.

"So, the next one."

Toru's voice took him out of his thoughts but the moment Taka heard the guitar chords, he knew which song it was.

_I wanna dance, like no one's watching me_

_I wanna love, like it's the only thing I know_

_I wanna laugh, from the bottom of my heart_

Taka's beautiful voice filled the living room, Toru missing a couple notes here and there due to him being so mesmerized by Taka's voice. _His_ vocalist's voice. No matter how many times he's heard the vocalist belt out a song, Toru will never cease to be amazed.

And of course Taka called him out for missing the chords, which prompted Toru to counter. Using just one song — _Jibun Rock_ —Toru listed out all the times the vocalist messed up on stage, Taka slumping in defeat yet again.

"No fair! I'm the pregnant one here! I should win at all times!"

Toru laughed at his companion. "Where did you get that idea from? The internet?"

"No...it's how I see it!"

Toru paused in his playing and gave Taka the most bored expression he could muster and said, "It doesn't work like that, honey."

"For me it should!" he shouted.

"Alright, alright." Toru chuckled. "Anything else that you should always get to your liking, Your Majesty?"

"Just a minute." Taka said, getting up off the sofa. Toru saw him trot towards the kitchen and thought that maybe he was going for water or something. So, the bleached blond refocused on his guitar, this time, he was strumming random chords that made good combinations.

"Toru." Taka said in slightly scary tone that made Toru jump a little.

"What is it?"

"We're out of food."

"There's no way we could be." The guitarist sighed, turning his attention back to his guitar. "I bought a whole month's worth the other day."

Without a word more to Toru, Taka sat beside the guitarist and took up a notepad and pen that was on top of the coffee table before them. He then quickly scribbled on the pages and waved it in front of Toru's face.

"Here. Grocery list." the vocalist said.

Toru sighed stressfully. "Taka... I told you I bought —" he broke off when he read the handwriting. "This isn't a grocery list. It's your cravings list!"

Taka batted his eyes at Toru with a smile. "Please?"

" _Just_ the bananas. No chocolate."

"Why not?" He whined.

"You're going to get fat if you continue eating this much chocolate."

"I don't care. You said you'll still love me if I look like a whale because you like whales." Taka reasoned.

"Taka..."

"Don't "Taka" me." the vocalist sassed. "I suggest you get your ass out there immediately. I'm getting miserable."

"Hai, hai, Your Majesty." Toru got up and stretched. He never knew that what he said in the past would come to bite him in the ass later on. "Let me go get my trusty steed."

Taka cracked up with laughter upon hearing Toru refer to his car as a "trusty steed". But before the man could leave out of the room, Taka gave his beloved a chaste kiss and threatened him that if he took too long, he'll be sleeping outside.

Toru nodded his understanding, and replied with bow, "Thy most loyal leigeman wilt mazzard out yarely."

And as such, Toru left the house, leaving behind a completely confused Takahiro.

"What the fuck was that?"

...

...

 

Toru drove to the nearest supermarket and quickly picked up the bananas for Taka then headed to Shibuya where the nearest _Lindt_ chocolate store was. But throughout the drive, Toru wondered if he could have gotten any regular chocolate and give the vocalist. But then again, this was His Majesty the King —Moriuchi Takahiro and he was a force not to be trifled with. _Plus,_ Toru doesn't want to sleep outside in the grass...

And so, after driving for an hour or so, Toru pulled up at the sidewalk in front of the Lindt store. He's been here so many times that as soon as he stepped through the door, the cashier immediately went for what the guitarist came for, located on the second shelf behind him.

"Wow, you know me so well." Toru said with a chuckle as he handed over his card.

"Well, given how often you buy the same amount of the same chocolate so often, Sir." the cashier responded with a smile. "If you don't be careful, you'll get diabetes."

Toru paled at the thought. "I'll keep that in mind. Although, it's not for me."

The male cashier grinned. "Hoh? For that special someone?"

"Yeah. And he's having chocolate cravings. If I don't give him, he'll let me sleep out in grass."

The cashier gave an understanding nod. "Don't worry, it won't last forever."

Toru sighed. "But it's not ending anytime soon either."

"Good point."

Toru then took his purchases after bidding the cashier goodbye. But he didn't even leave the establishment properly when he crashed into someone, sending the smaller person to the ground.

"Oh shit! Are you alright?!" the guitarist asked as he aided the young woman to her feet. He couldn't see her face at the time given that her hair was hiding it.

"Yeah, I'm —" she broke off when her eyes met Toru's. "To-Toru-san?!"

"Ayaka-san? What are you —" he stopped when he realized that that would be a dumb question. He was standing partially outside a chocolate store. What else could someone be doing here? "What's up?" he casually said.

"I haven't seen you in ages! Except in the media, of course." She laughed. This young woman was Hironaka Ayaka, one of Toru's friends. In the outset, they weren't, as she had interviewed him many years ago. And over the course of the time, they gradually became friends but they weren't extremely close.

"Well same goes for you." Toru replied. "I haven't heard from you at all. Is something wrong with your phone?"

"Right! I lost it and I had gotten a new number." She said, scratching her head a little. "Could you give me back yours?"

"Sure." The guitarist said as he reached out for her phone. He punched in his number saved it given that she had the same phone as he did.

"So what are you doing here? I never knew you were into chocolate."

Toru chuckled and shook his head, "It's for Taka." he unknowingly said. Because she knew the vocalist, he didn't think anything of it. However, she didn't know vocalist as well as she did like Toru. They've met, quite briefly but that was it.

"Really, I never knew he liked chocolate!" she gasped. "I've only heard him talk about strawberries."

Toru chuckled and said, "It's only a phase." but then he remembered that he needed to get his ass back to Taka or else he won't be cuddling tonight. "I gotta run. His Majesty is waiting."

"Alright. Take care!" she waved to the leaving guitarist. Toru made a small gesture to her before driving off, hoping that Taka won't throw him out.

 

...

...

 

At the moment, the vocalist was sitting in his sofa with his guitar nestled in his lap. He missed playing the instrument, given how wrecked he feels these days. So randomly, he strums the chords for "Heartache" and began to sing. His melodic voice filled the living room, but there was one reason for him to start playing the instrument.

Toru has yet to return.

_Normally,_ the guitarist would have been back by now, but he isn't. Taka was engulfed in two emotions simultaneously...worry and misery. Obviously he was worried because his lover is taking longer than usual. He didn't want to think of the worst scenario — _that his guitarist was in an accident_ —so he ended up texting the man. When he saw him reply that he was on his way, Taka exhaled a sigh of relief.

Still, when Toru showed up way later, Taka was not pleased.

"What took you so long?" the petite vocalist asked with a hand on his hips.

"I ran into a friend at Lindt. Chatted for a couple seconds." Toru replied as he headed into the kitchen with the bag.

"Hoh? You have friends? Since when?" he joked.

"I may not have a truckload like you but yes, I do have friends, _Takahiro._ _"_

"Someone's getting triggered." the vocalist mumbled with a playful smirk.

The most Toru could do was smile. This was another part of Taka that he loved, when he's teasing. There were times when he was down and in the dumps and the vocalist would do his best to cheer him up (with or without the help of a fellatio).

"Do you want the chocolate melted?" he then asked. It was regular thing for Taka anyway but he just wanted to make sure.

"Yup! And dip the bananas in it while you're at it!"

Toru did as he was told and soon exited the kitchen. Placing the treat before Taka, the guitarist saw the vocalist's face brightened with joy. As long as Taka was happy, then the whole world will be happy.

"Here. Take a bite."

Toru cringed. "Of _that?"_

"No, of my ass." Taka spat with sarcasm.

"Honestly, I rather biting your ass than —" Toru broke off the moment he saw Taka's intense glare as if indicating "Say no and I'll castrate you, motherfucker". And so, he took a bite of the banana dipped in chocolate and chewed. "Wow, this doesn't taste so bad."

"Of course not." Taka chuckled. "Would I be eating it if it didn't?"

"Taka, you eat bread buttered with chocolate with pickles and banana in between. I'm sure, positively sure, that, that shit tastes fucking nasty."

Taka fidgeted. "No..." he said while looking away. "The sweetness of the chocolate and bananas overrides the pickles."

Toru will not be fooled. He laughed at the vocalist who was too busy savouring the taste of the treat he currently had. But the more Taka ate, the sticker he became with the dripping chocolate. Licking it from running down his arms, a few drops fell onto his nose without him realizing.

"Babe,"

"Hmm?"

"You've got some..." Toru made gestures to his nose but Taka only gawked at him while still trying to lick the chocolate off his forearm. With a sigh, Toru instead used his tongue to lick the sweet off Taka's nose. A moan escaped the vocalist's lips, shocking Toru of this unexpected reaction.

Drawing back and looking at his lover's face, Toru smiled when he heard Taka say:

"Give me more."

And so, Toru continued to kiss Taka until the two were caught in a passionate make-out session.

Taka’s arms snaked around Toru’s neck while the guitarist’s hands slithered their way up Taka’s t-shirt, caressing the skin beneath. Unable to contain himself, Toru grasped Taka’s legs and laid him onto his back in the couch. He then shifted his position to match Taka’s, not once did they break the kiss.

The guitarist swiftly took off Taka’s shirt, throwing it to the floor next to them before recapturing Taka’s lips. He moved from his lips, trailing down Taka’s slender neck with his tongue, getting a pleasured moan from the vocalist. Reaching his chest, Toru circled Taka’s nipple after which he took the nub into his mouth and sucked on it gently.

Taka gasped out loud at this action as his back automatically arched upwards. “Toru…” Toru knows _exactly_ where on Taka's body he should suck and _exactly how_ he should suck it for the optimum results. At the moment, Taka was drowning in such pleasure, it was maddening _._

Toru smirked at Taka, and ran his hands through Taka’s curly locks.

Their lovemaking was interrupted by the incessant ringing of their doorbell. At first, Toru wanted to ignore it as judging by the annoyance, he had a feeling of who it was. But, it became unbearable and Taka was getting concerned as it may be something important.

“Maybe we should check who it is.” He gasped out, taking in air as he couldn’t while they kissed.

“They can wait.” Toru mumbled.

“Hmm…” Taka said as he wrapped his legs around the guitarist. Before they could progress any further, the doorbell stopped but banging took its place.

“What the hell?!” Taka said in shock. “Are they gonna break down our door?!”

With an angered growl, Toru got up off Taka and marched towards the door with a sour look on his face. Viciously swinging the door open he snapped, “What?!”

“Well, good day as well, Toru.” Gocchan said with a shrug. He then looked to Hiroki, who was beside him, “I knew he was going to be mad with how you do things.”

Hiroki shrugged, “I didn’t know whether or not they were upstairs so I _had_ to make them hear.” Surprisingly, the two had met at the doorstep.

Toru looked at the young vocalist as though he wanted to strangle him. But, seeing that Gocchan was present, he decided to address their manager first.

“What are you doing here, Gocchan? _With_ Hiro no less.” he asked as he opened the door wider for them to enter the house. By this time, Taka was fully dressed and sat on the couch looking as cool and calm as though he and Toru weren’t almost fucking a couple minutes ago.

The manager sighed as he sat. “We met at your doorstep." he answered Toru. He then looked to Taka, "So, how are you holding up?"

"I'm fine, Gocchan. The mornings are still hell but I manage." Taka said with an annoyed groan.

Seeing his brother's irritated look, Hiroki then said, "Did I interrupt something?"

"How could you tell?" Toru drawled. But luckily for the couple, Taka's guitar was on the coffee table, so probably, Hiroki thought they were in the middle of something music related.

Gocchan cleared his throat to get back their attention. "Well, management wants you to go on an interview before you start showing. Although you can always wear those huge t-shirts, they wanted the world to see that you're coming on well." he added, "We can't always keep releasing statements for God knows how long _without_ members —especially you, Taka—showing yourself at least once. They will smell that something's fishy and try to dig it up, probably stalk you or await you here."

The couple exchanged glances. It made sense, since the statement that was released was somewhat vague and sounded as though Taka could be suffering from something as simple as exhaustion. And the public were really savages when they wanted to get information, especially from celebrities.

"Alright. I'll do it." Taka said, the uncertainty was clear in his voice, which shocked both Hiroki and Toru.

"Are you sure Taka?" Toru asked worriedly.

"Oi, oi, it's going to be an interview with all four of you." Gocchan reassured. "We aren't that wicked to let Taka alone in the lion's den without moral support."

A smile graced their faces at the older man's statement and at the same time, a feeling of relief came over Taka. In times past, going to an interview without either of the others by his side would have been nothing, but now, when he heard about it, he didn't want to go alone. He wanted Toru to be there with him and he wondered what caused this... _feeling._

"Now that's said, how far along are you?"

"Nine weeks."

"Wow, felt like it was just yesterday we were at the hospital freaking out."

"Even so, he was four weeks then, Gocchan." Toru supplied.

"Whatever, Toru." the manager shrugged. "So, did you like my gift?"

"The watch? Of course!" Taka perked. "How could I not like it!" The vocalist practically beamed at his manager with a bright smile on his face. For Toru, it was like seeing him opening the gift again. The watch was a pretty normal Rolex, however, inside it was Taka's face, the picture used was a candid face shot from their special live in Nagisaen.

"I thought so." Gocchan smirked. He then glanced at his watch and said, "I have to run now, so see you again soon. I'll call when everything's ready for the interview!"

"Okay! Bye bye!"

The moment Gocchan left, Hiroki didn't hesitate and grinned at his big brother, "Taka-nii, I have something for you."

"What is it?" Taka asked. "It better be something worth it because you ruined something special earlier!"

"Ruined what?"

"We were fucking." Toru answered. "Or rather, were about to, when you banged on the door."

Hiroki was not amused. "Isn't that what the bedroom is for?"

"It's what the whole house is for." Taka deadpanned.

Hiroki blanched. "While I admire your adventurous spirit, Taka-nii, that is disturbing."

Taka twisted his face and rolled his eyes at his little brother. "Single bastards like you won't know that the mind-blowing fucks don't happen in the bedroom." he then added with a mumble, "Although Toru's fucks are always mind-blowing no matter where we are."

Toru choked on his own spit.

Hiroki's eyes nearly dropped out their sockets.

When Taka noticed the silence a couple minutes later, he asked, "Why aren't you speaking?"

"I, uh," Hiroki started, still blown away by his brother's raw choice of words. "I'll be going on tour later this year, so you won't see me much, Taka-nii."

"Aww, really? I wish I could attend at least one of your concerts." he pouted.

"You'd be far along by then, there's always next year. We're doing seventeen shows starting in September." the youngest Moriuchi grinned mischievously at Taka. "And we'll be taking your throne, _Onii-chan."_ He broke out in laughter while Toru shook his head, knowing full well how Taka is going to clapback.

"Pfft!" Taka laughed. "Next year I won't have time for you because guess what, One Ok Rock will be coming back with vengeance." Taka stared intensely at Hiroki like he wanted to rip him apart. "And for the record, you won't take our throne because you _can't._ What "My First Story" is going to be doing is just keeping the throne warm until we come back, that's all. So enjoy all the attention my dear _Otouto,_ because it surely won't fucking last."

"Hoh? We'll see about that." Hiroki smirked.

Taka grinned evilly. "I see. Just make sure you're fully prepared, this is going to be war. And if you aren't careful, One Ok Rock will rip you and your little band to shreds."

Toru leaned back and grinned. "Yeah, you go Babe. Tell that brat he's a millennium too early to challenge us."

"Don't worry, once my babies are born, I'm sure we'll _show_ them. Not just talk."

Hiroki shivered. "Taka-nii, you're scaring me."

"Great. Because you should be."

 


	12. Chapter 12

 

_“Cause now I can see that you_

_were never honest with me.”_

One Ok Rock _“20/20”_

…

…

 

It's been a while since Toru's "reunion" at Lindt with Ayaka, and ever since then, the two had often times texted and called each other to catch up like old times. At the outset, Taka hadn't cared because, well, he has a shit ton of friends that he’s texted and called so he hadn’t thought much of it. It wasn’t as though Toru was always on the device, but when he was, it _always her._

At the moment, Taka was alone at home because there was some shit that needed Toru and the other members to attend. Boredom was kicking in, and so he ended up taking up his guitar and starting strumming some random chords. At the same time, words starting flowing out of his mouth, a sweet, rich, melodious sound filled the living room and before he knew it, the time had flew by.

Looking at his phone screen, he saw a message from Toru that caused him to raise his eyebrows.

_Sorry babe, I’ll be coming home late tonight. I’m with a friend at dinner._

Taka looked at the message and said nothing. _Is it her?_

He was tempted to ask but discarded the thought. He trusts Toru but the problem he has is with this "Ayaka" chick. She was _always_ texting him, and for what? Taka didn't know because he wasn't the type to search Toru's phone.

Giving up, Taka simply replied, _Stay safe and get your ass here quickly._

It was late evening when Toru finally came home, which was understandable because of the traffic. Of course, he encountered a rather pissed off looking Taka sitting in their sofa, legs crossed and arms folded.

"Babe, I can explain." Toru started, sensing the danger.

"Then I suggest you start."

"The time ran off more than we expect and I..." he trailed off and avoided Taka's piercing gaze. "...was stuck in traffic."

Taka narrowed his eyes at the guitarist. He knew that there was something else underlying this but he didn't press. "Well, I'm glad that you're finally home."

"Hmm...me too..." Toru murmured as he pulled Taka close for a cuddle.

 

...

...

 

A week later, when all is well, Toru had to head over to Osaka because his mother was in the hospital. Tsukihiko didn't give the details over the phone, and as much as the guitarist wanted to bring Taka along with him, the vocalist didn't want to sit in a car for five hours and even though taking the Shinkansen would lessen the journey to three hours, Taka still didn't want to be stuck in a train without the ability to stop anywhere he wanted, with a bunch of people he didn't know.

Which leaves the vocalist in his current dilemma.

“I’m so bored…” Taka yawned lazily as he skipped through the channels not knowing what to watch. However, something caught his eye on one of the entertainment channels.

_One Ok Rock’s Yamashita Toru seen on date with Hironaka Ayaka._

The remote fell out of Taka’s hand in an instant.

The vocalist’s eyes widened as he looked at his TV with utter shock. The headline left him breathless, and as the reporter continued to talk, he felt as though a bomb dropped on him. Toru, _his_ Toru was being unfaithful. After all those things that he said, _promised;_ were they just empty talk?

“No, they couldn’t be…” Taka spoke in denial. “They couldn’t…”

Yamashita Toru wasn’t that type of guy, right? Right? But the evidence before him was countering all that he knew, all that he experienced. At the moment, Taka felt hurt, betrayed… _used._

_“I’ll still love you even if you look like a whale.”_

“What a fucking liar.” Taka gasped as the tears ran down his cheeks. “Such a liar.” The tears ran from his eyes in torrents, and no matter how the vocalist tried to calm himself down, his emotions seemed to have a mind of their own.

Heartbroken, Taka took up his phone and dialled Toru’s number. It rang until voicemail answered. He tried yet again, the same thing.

“I can’t believe this.” He sobbed. “He really…”

Taking a breather, Taka decided to clear his head. With a hand cradled to this stomach, he tried his utmost best to calm himself down. Unnecessary stress was not good for his babies, and as such, he had to get his shit together. He trotted up the stairs to sleep this off, hoping that this was just a nightmare that he needed to wake up from.

 

...

...

 

Tomoya, who had been out and about, had passed by a convenience store and something by the window caught his eyes. It was a magazine with a headline that made the drummer's jaw drop:

_Toru of One Ok Rock reportedly dating famous TV Host of Music Station._

Immediately, he dashed inside the establishment and purchased the magazine. Right then and there, he read the article and the first thing that came to his mind was if Taka had seen this. The vocalist was always on social media, had a shit ton of friends who may ask him about this...

"Good God," the wheezed when he had finished the article. The cashier before him looked at him with confusion. Given Tomoya's disguise, he couldn't recognize him.

Dialling, Tomoya eagerly waited for the phone to pick up. When it did, he screeched loudly, "Ryouta! Have you seen _Bunshin Magazine?!"_

_"No. Why?"  
_

"Toru! Toru! Scandal!" He couldn't even speak properly. "With Ayaka!"

_"Ehh?! That TV chick he's friends with? Is it serious?"_

"Of course! There's even a picture showing her clinging to his arm and them going into her apartment! This is a fucking disaster!"

_"Oh my shit! Does Mori-chan know about this?"_

Tomoya paused. "I hope not. I mean, this is something serious. And I don't think Toru would actually do something like this."

_"Right. And he's in Osaka right now. So when was this shit?"_

"I dunno. But I think the one who we should worry about finding out isn't Taka-chan. It's Hiroki."

_"Fuck! That's true! If he finds out then we're going to need a new lead guitarist!"_

"And that's extra stress I don't need."

 

...

...

 

Toru was exhausted by the time he got back into Tokyo. 

The drive from Osaka to Tokyo took five hours, the only thing keeping him sane on the journey was the music he was blasting. "I need to restock on Taka-energy." he groaned. But as soon as he neared his street, his phone rang.

"Hello?" he answered, leaving it on speaker so that he could drive peacefully.

 _"Toru! Did you see the Bunshin?!"_ It was Ryouta.

"No. Why?"

_"Bro, you've got a scandal! With Ayaka!"_

Toru stepped onto the breaks, bringing his car to sudden halt.

"What?!" he roared. _"What?!"_

_"Yeah bro! Tomo-kun showed me the magazine! You're in deep shit if this gets to Hiroki!"  
_

"But I didn't do anything wrong! We're not dating!"

_"Toru, she was clinging to your arm and the two of you were seen going into her apartment. How the hell are you going to get your ass out of this?"_

"She was drunk and I carried her home. Obviously, with her being drunk, she isn't going to stand up straight."

 _"Well..."_ the bassist drawled. _"The entire world thinks you're fucking her."_

"Oh my God." He gasped in horror. "Is Taka with you?"

_"About that..."_

 

...

...

 

Toru hurriedly walked up to the door and rang the doorbell incessantly. Thanks to Ryouta and Tomoya, he knew where his beloved was, and _why_ Taka decided to stay here. He couldn’t believe that there were cameras around and he didn’t notice. But what made everything worse, was that the gossip loving shits made the entire world think that Ayaka was his girlfriend. And that they probably fucked too.

He let out a distressed sigh.

“Please, just open the door already.” He mumbled.

As if on cue, the front door swung open and a worried Masako revealed herself. “Toru-kun…what are —”

“Masako-san, please can I speak with Taka. Please?” his voice was urgent, his tone was pleading.

Her eyes narrowed at him. “He’s a wreck, you know?”

“Please! This is all a misunderstanding! I’d never hurt him! I love him too much to do such a thing!”

Masako sighed in exasperation. A part of her knew that Toru was innocent, but really, seeing her eldest son in such a state was really heartbreaking. Add to that, he’s pregnant. His hormones are out of control right now.

“He isn’t here at the moment though.” She smiled thinly at him. “Hiroki and Tomohiro took him out somewhere.”

“Oh.” Toru looked dejected.

“But you can come in and wait if you’d like.” she quickly said seeing his face.

Toru contemplated as to whether or not he should take her up on the offer. He didn’t know when Taka and his brothers would return, and meeting an indignant Hiroki was not on his list. He didn’t even know what Tomohiro was like when he’s mad either. But he figured that it was best to face the onslaught now than have them come looking for him. He doubts they’ll listen to reason then.

“Thanks.” Toru replied. But as soon as he made a step in, he heard a high pitched voice from behind.

“What the hell are you doing here?” Toru turned around saw the vocalist with tear stained cheeks and reddened eyes. Hiroki and Tomohiro were behind looking absolutely murderous. But suddenly, he saw the two younger males walk up to him, glared at him before disappearing into the house.

“Taka…I…”

“You what? You’re _sorry?”_ Taka snapped with folded arms. “Sorry isn’t going to cut it you lying cheater.”

“Taka I didn’t cheat!” Toru objected. “Please believe me! She —”

“Then why the fuck were you at dinner with her, huh!?”

“She invited me! And I told you this! I messaged you and you were fine!”

“I didn’t know you were with that bitch!” Taka shouted at the top of his lungs. “How could you do this to me?! You said you’ll still love me, and I haven’t even started looking like whale yet!”

“Babe…” Toru said as he drew closer to Taka who inched away. “I’m not cheating on you. She’s really just a friend. Believe me.” He reached out to Taka who swatted his hand away.

“Don’t you dare touch me.” Taka sniffed. “I trusted you. I really did and you went behind my back and —” he broke himself off to change the subject. “You even went to her house with her clinging onto your arm. And you’re going to look at me and tell me that she’s just a friend?” his voice softened into a crack as he turned his back to walk away from the guitarist.

“She drank too much and I couldn’t just leave her on the streetside like that. So I opted to bring her home. And since she was drunk, she was wobbling all over the place. Babe…” Toru  was at his wits end. He needed to let the vocalist see the truth.

“Don’t babe me!” Taka roared, walking away. “You should’ve fucking left her on the street side and come back to me! _Me!"_

“Where’re you going?” Toru then asked in worry.

“Anywhere away from you! I don’t need you in my life!”

Toru couldn’t take any more. With two large strides, he caught the vocalist and spun him around to face him. “You don’t mean that right?”

“Of course I do! I can raise my babies on my own!” Taka barked. He twisted out of Toru’s grip but in doing so, he managed to lose his footing and ended up stumbling into the road.

“Taka watch out!” Toru screamed.

“Huh?”

It was then that Taka saw the car speeding towards him. Out of shock, he couldn’t move. He wanted to run, to get out of the way but his legs froze. It was almost as though time froze, one moment he saw the car coming towards him and the next; he felt a force pushing him out of the way.

The tires screeched to a halt, followed by the sound of a body being hit.

Getting up on his elbows, Taka realized that he was on the other side of the road, unscathed. However, there was someone else lying on his sides in the street.

Realizing who it was, Taka let out a mortified scream. “Toru!!”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!
> 
> Sorry for this short chapter, I had to rewrite the entire thing because of friendly advice.


	13. Chapter 13

_“I will never let you back into my life”_

One Ok Rock _“20/20”_

 

...

...

 

Taka's breathing was heavy with a worried Hiroki and Tomohiro were beside him, trying to calm him down. The brothers were seated in the waiting room after seeing Toru disappear behind the double doors of the ER. The petite vocalist had been a mess ever since the accident, but unlike his brother, Hiroki was pissed that the guitarist got hit by a car _before_ he could speak his mind.

"It's going to be all right, Nii-san." Tomohiro tried to soothe. "This is Toru-san, he'll live." he said with a reassuring smile, but Hiroki could see what lies beneath it. _He fucking has to, because we need to talk._ Yup, Tomohiro would have definitely added that, but given the context and Taka's state of mind, he held his tongue.

"But...but it's all my fault Tomohiro!" Taka sobbed. "If I hadn't..."

"It's not your fault Taka-nii." Hiroki cut in, still gazing blankly at the wall before him. "If Toru had just been faithful to you, you would have been home. And as such, you wouldn't have gotten mad and walked out in the street to escape his unfaithful clutches."

"Hiro, you idiot!" Tomohiro hissed when he caught the look on Taka's face. Once again, the vocalist burst out in full blown tears.

"Don't cry Taka-nii, we're here." Hiroki quickly said when his eyes met his second older brother's glare.

"Takahiro? Don't cry baby." Masako arrived with three bottles of water for her three boys. In fact, she hadn't meant to call Taka "baby", but it was so engraved in her that when she saw her boy crying, she'll try to soothe him. Such was a mother's job.

"It's Hiro and his unstable mouth!" Tomohiro said, directing all the blame on the youngest. “Don’t you know how sensitive Nii-san is right now? _Huh?!”_

"It’s not my fault! You’re overreacting!"

"It _is_ your fault! And I’m not overreacting!"

"Shut the hell up both of you." Masako hissed, taking her seat in between Taka and Hiroki.

"Yes Ma'am!"

 

...

...

 

Ryouta and Tomoya entered the waiting room with worried faces. Hiroki had called and told them the news, but for the life of them, he had sounded so lacklustre and deadpan that at first, they thought he was joking. But when the vocalist turned the phone so that they could hear Taka's agonizing wails, they knew shit went down.

So now, they've arrived in record breaking time, hoping to hear an update on their leader, lead guitarist but most of all, _a big-brother-like-friend._

"Do you know how's he's doing?" Ryouta asked, his voice was close cracking. Tears welled in his eyes, but they didn't escape his eyelids. _Yet._

"Not yet, Ryou-san." Hiroki said, rising from his seat. "Doctor isn't out yet."

"But how did —" Tomoya broke off when Hiroki clasped a hand over his mouth.

"Whisper." he said in a low voice.

"How did this happen?" the drummer asked, following Hiroki's instruction.

"He and Taka-nii were arguing. Taka-nii stumbled into the road to escape his _diabolical clutches_ , a car was coming and he pushed him out of the way." Hiroki shrugged. "The typical stuff you see in manga for a fighting couple to rekindle their love."

"What the hell?! You think this is a joke?!" Ryouta roared at Hiroki's attitude. "My brother is lying in a hospital bed and you're talking as though this is something to take lightly?! How could you?!"

"How could he." Hiroki snapped. " _My brother_ loved Toru-san! And what does he do?! Fuck some other chick behind his back! Like, Taka-nii is hundred times cuter than that bitch!"

"Guys..." Tomoya started, trying to warn them to keep their voices down. But he was brutally ignored.

"Toru didn't cheat! I'm pretty sure that there's an explanation for this!" Ryouta countered. " _Plus,_ there are always two sides to a story! In this case, three! We've only seen from the media's point of view! What about Toru's? What about —" he broke off to ask Tomoya, "What's her name again?"

"Ayaka." the drummer deadpanned.

"Right! What about Ayaka's? We don't know what _truly_ happened until we ask both of them!"

"Ryouta-kun, Hiroki." a gentle voice called from behind. Immediately, the men stiffened, upon seeing the aura seeping out of the enka singer's body. _"Get out."_

Wordlessly, the two exited the waiting room, with Tomoya trailing behind as a means of damage control. Who knows if the two may end up killing each other when they're unsupervised?

"Now look what you've done." Hiroki hissed. "What if Taka-nii needs me?"

Ryouta glared at the young vocalist. "It's your fault."

"No."

"Oi. Don't start." Tomoya finally snapped, his face darkening. If it's one thing that Ryouta has learned over the years is that never to get Tomoya angry. While he may be Taka's "punching bag", when the eldest got mad, it was never a pretty sight.

"Hai." the two whimpered out.

They fell into a deafening silence, watching people come and go, hearing others' chatter about a myriad of topics, but no one dared to say a word. One reason being Ryouta was on Toru's side, and naturally Hiroki would be willing and _eager_ to kill for Taka. Tomoya seemed neutral; his only worry was to make sure that the two before him didn't kill each other. He didn't know how to break it to either family if that shit happened.

A few more minutes passed and still no one spoke, until they heard hastened footsteps behind.

"Guys! Doctor says Toru-san's going to be alright!" Tomohiro said with joy. Even though the man deceived his big brother, he was still glad that he hadn't died. Taka's self-blame would be endless and they couldn’t deal with that shit right now.

"Just so you know," Hiroki started, getting up onto his feet and heading back to the waiting room, "You should start looking for a new lead guitarist."

Tomoya's shoulders sagged in distress as he watched Hiroki and Tomohiro disappear behind the revolving doors, Ryouta remained rooted at his spot, eyes blazing with rage. When he joined the band , he hadn’t signed up for this.

"Toru, you better pay me extra for all this stress."

 

…

…

 

"Everything is going to be fine," the doctor spoke, looking at a clipboard that seemingly held Toru’s information. "He has a mild concussion and a few lacerations here and there. He should be awake within two days."

"Thank God." Masako sighed in relief.

"Would you like to see him still?"

All eyes looked to Taka. He was rather quiet throughout all this; his tears were constantly running down his cheeks. Hiroki and Tomohiro weren’t going to visit Toru, or else they’ll shake him until he wakes the fuck up so that they could kill him; Tomoya, Ryouta and Masako felt that Taka should see him first.

“S―sure.” He managed to utter out.

“Right this way.”

And such, Tomohiro and Hiroki stayed back, while the others went on ahead. The latter sat with his legs crossed and arms folded, a nasty scowl on his face and dark aura emitting from his body. Tomohiro was a little calmer than his little brother, but, of course, he was boiling with anger on the inside.

“I swear, I just want to know the moment he gets up.” The vocalist grumbled.

“Don’t we all?” Tomohiro agreed.

“I still can’t believe he’d do such a thing to Taka-nii. I never thought he was capable of such a treacherous act.”

“It’s always the quiet ones. They’re always wolves in sheep clothing.”

“Damn right you are, Tomo-nii.” Hiroki hissed.

Meanwhile, Taka was sitting by Toru’s bedside, unable to utter words for a couple minutes. The small vocalist just sat there with his head hung low, torn between his emotions. He wanted to smack the guitarist for what he’s done, but at the same time, he wanted to be comforted in that warm embrace of his.

“I’m glad that you’re going to be alright.” Taka finally started, the sounds of the machines beeping were annoying. “But even so, even so…” he doubled his lips, preventing himself from breaking out in any more crying. “…why did you do this, Toru? Don’t you love me anymore? Don’t you?”

But of course, Toru wasn’t going to suddenly wake up after the doctor informed them he’ll be in two days. Still, Taka felt like he needed to get this out of his system whether or not Toru is capable of replying.

He loved the guitarist, he loved him so much and to find out that he’d done such a thing behind his back was unforgivable. At first, when the news broke, he didn’t want to believe it. He didn’t. But then, there was a video along with it.

How many times have they gone out together prior?

How many times had he gone to her house?

How many times was he _with_ her instead of him?

_Just how many times…?_

“We were supposed to be happy Toru.” The vocalist sobbed. “You, me and our babies. You were supposed to name them, we were supposed to pick out their clothes…” he trailed off, wiping the tears that fell from his eyes. “We were supposed to live happily.”

He stared at Toru’s unconscious frame one last time before rising to his feet. “Goodbye, Toru.” He said as he walked through the door.

 

…

…

 

The moment Taka got back home, the first thing he did was pack his things.

He took everything he owned ―everything except the things Toru gave to him. The watch the guitarist had bought for him on his birthday some years back. The souvenir he brought back for him when he went overseas without Taka for something music related. So many things that reminded him of Toru, Taka left them in the house because he was done. _So fucking done._

With most of his clothing and accessories already packed in a suitcase, Taka called the moving services, as he wasn’t going to strain himself. So, he sat on the bed and waited. Looking at the bedsheets, he remembered how many hot nights they shared, how many cuddles and spoons they had, how many pillow fights and fun shit they did. He remembered it all and suddenly felt repulsed.

Was he so blinded that he hadn’t realized what was going on?

“Maybe Dad was right after all…”

 

…

…

 

“Ne, Tomo-kun,” Ryouta started as they headed to Taka and Toru’s shared house to have a talk with the vocalist. While at the hospital, Ryouta felt uneasy, felt like everything was crumbling and neither he nor Tomoya could stop it. “What are we going to do?”

Tomoya suddenly braked.

Truly, he hadn’t known himself, but this was something that needed fixing. _Urgent fixing._ And yet, Toru was unconscious and won’t be up for two days. In the time that he’s out, things are worsening between him and Taka, and who knows? It might even spill into their band dynamics.

They were like a family; the whole world probably knew this by now, so for this gigantic rift to be formed between their vocalist and lead guitarist…

“I mean, Toru is in the hospital, Mori-chan is a wreck, but when Toru gets out, I doubt Mori-chan will want him near. How's band dynamics gonna work?" Ryouta continued, unaware of Tomoya’s inner plight.

One Ok Rock was _always_ like a _family._ Even if they had their little squabble and fights, they still made up and carried on with their antics after. But now that something of this magnitude has happened, Ryouta was right to ask, _what the hell are they gonna do?_ Is the band going to turn into something like those divorced couple TV drama series?

“Shit.” He uttered out in distress. Tomoya placed his forehead on the steering wheel, letting out a heavy sigh.

“Tomo-kun?” Ryouta asked, patting his back ever so gently while he inwardly freaked out. “Are you alright? Is it what I said?”

The drummer nodded.

He then looked up to meet the bassist’s worried gaze and said, “It isn’t that you said a bad thing, you know.” He started. “It’s just that reality hit me. If we can’t get to the bottom of this, I just wondered if we’ll end up turning into those “business” bands instead of what we have now.”

Ryouta’s face looked downcast. Everyone knew that there were many bands out there in which members only had a business relationship with each other. There was no “friends” or “family” feeling, just strictly “business”. Given what their personalities were like, and the dream they have, if that should happen, then it’ll be end of One Ok Rock.

“I don’t want that either.” He said. “We have to get to the bottom of this Tomo-kun; I’m _not_ letting some shady magazine article ruin what we have.”

"That's right." Tomoya agreed. "But _how?_ Where can we find her?"

“Where there’s a will, there’s a way.” Ryouta grinned.

 

…

…

 

The two had finally reached their destination.

In the midst of their discussion ― _while heading to Taka and Toru’s house_ ―they somehow came up with the idea that they should seek out Ayaka first. Ryouta strongly felt that she was the root cause of this shit, and if they could get her to clarify the whole situation, then everything can proceed to normalcy.

So, they diverted from their original plan and made it to the woman’s workplace, _TV Asahi Corporation_. However, they sat in Tomoya’s car ―watching, waiting―until they saw signs of her exiting the complex. They waited for what seemed to be an eternity, watching both people and vehicle come and go. It wasn’t until the sun was setting that Ryouta realized their stupid mistake―

“Wait, does she drive or not?”

―that could’ve saved them their efforts and time. Tomoya looked at the bassist with a “how could I have overlooked that” expression on his face, before hitting his forehead on the steering wheel constantly.

“More than likely.” The drummer groaned out. “Or even if she doesn’t, she could call a taxi service.”

“Shit! Why didn’t we think of this before!? Here we wasted our lives sitting in the car looking like stalkers!” Ryouta shrieked. “What are we gonna do now!?”

“We have to retreat and regroup.” Tomoya said, his eyes were still locked on the gate before him. He tapped his fingers on the steering wheel, pensive. “If anything, maybe we’d have to enlist Hiro’s help.”

Ryouta snorted and folded his arms. “I’d rather die than have that brat around.” He huffed.

Once again, Tomoya placed his forehead on the steering wheel. This was another effect of Taka and Toru’s fight, Hiroki and Ryouta can’t stand each other because of their differing views. While Tomoya could blame either party, _their_ fight could be worked out if the two had just talked.

“Right…” he said, avoiding the drama that would have followed if he had said otherwise. “So how are we going to get to her?”

“Toru’s cellphone.”

“How are we going to get that? We’re not his biological family, so the hospital won’t hand his valuables over to us.”

Ryouta gave him a smug smirk. “Tsukki is on his way here as we speak, plus, I think his parents are coming too. When they get the valuables, all we to need do is take the cellphone,” The bassist grinned. “Well, we’ll take everything because they’ll definitely dump it on us.”

“Oh…I see.” Tomoya nodded. “But why didn’t you say something before! We left the hospital and his family are coming?! We need to head back!”

“Let me call Mori-chan first and ask ―” he trailed off; realizing that asking the vocalist “how are you doing” might be a little stupid. Even Tomoya looked at him with a raised brow. “Let me just check up on him.”

“That’s better.”

But before Ryouta could call their vocalist, he saw an incoming call from a very unexpected person. He stared at it for a split second before deciding to answer. He knew what the caller was like; he wasn’t going to stop until he received an answer.

“Hello?”

_“We need to talk.”_

 

…

…

 

Hiroki was in a sour mood.

At this point, _everyone_ had heard about Toru’s accident, it somehow becoming “breaking news”. The vocalist was shocked at the speed at which news travels, but that was the least of his problems.

His brother Takahiro was experiencing serious heartbreak. His partner, Yamashita Toru ―a man who Hiroki had secretly looked up to for being able to form a band at such a young age and keep it going strong all these years―had dared to break his brother’s heart.

When the Moriuchi brothers were younger, Hiroki was most times subjected to bullying or some form of mistreatment by his fellow peers and their older siblings. But, no matter how many times he’d experience these harsh things, there his Taka-nii was, mowing down the bullies with a plastic shovel, stones or anything he got his hands on. Tomohiro joined in sometimes, but he wasn’t really a fighter. He usually guides Hiroki away from the bloodshed, and often times told Taka where the bullies had escaped to.

They were a terrible duo, but that didn’t change the fact that they were the best brothers Hiroki could have ever asked for.

And when Taka had decided to join a band and make his own music with his friends who shared the same goal, Hiroki wanted to follow in his footsteps because Taka-nii was his role-model.

However, just when he thought that his brother had finally found happiness in the form of being with Yamashita Toru, _this_ happened.

At the moment, Hiroki didn’t care about Toru’s side of the story, or anyone’s for that matter. His brother was hurting so bad and what could he do? What could anyone do? Even if he were to stab Toru to death would that make his brother’s pain go away? No it wouldn’t. _Being there_ for Taka could only do so much and no more. He wanted to wipe out the source of Taka’s pain so bad, but he knew, he _knew_ that that’ll probably make things worse and land his ass in jail. That’s an added stress which Taka wouldn’t be able to bear, especially with his babies on the way.

Still, there was a part of the vocalist which felt that Toru was telling the truth. If he should actually think about it, Toru was smart enough to not cheat on Taka because one ―Tomoya and Ryouta would rather die than let that happen. Two ―he and Tomohiro would kill him. Three ―he’d bring Toru’s soul back from the dead _just so_ his parents could kill him again. Four ―he’d bring him back from the dead _again_ so that his own family could kill for being such an idiot. Five ―Toru loves One Ok Rock, doing something would definitely cause a huge rift between them and maybe Taka ends up leaving the band or someshit. And losing Taka was not on Toru’s to-do list. He’s worked too hard to get the vocalist, and what’s more, there are many producers and musicians who are hounding after the vocalist even to this day for his voice.

Hiroki bit his thumbnail. “Then does that really mean he’s innocent?” He said to himself after he considered these instances. Toru knows these more than anyone so he wouldn’t dare do such a thing to endanger his life and the future of his band. “No, this cannot be solved so easily.” He grumbled.

Hiroki rose to his feet with a determined look on his face, took up his cellphone from the coffee table and dialled a number. He placed it at his ear and waited for the person on the other end to answer.

“We need to talk.” He said when the person on the other end of the line answered.

_“Okay. When?”_

“Tomorrow. Let’s meet with Taka-nii as well.”

 

…

…

 

Ayaka dropped her bags at the front entrance, after she had placed her shoes in the storage. She was tired, her work burning her out. Slowly, she made her way to the living room, where she plopped herself down in the sofa and turned on the TV. Earlier today, she had heard some of her co-workers talking about a breaking news article but she was too busy to be care.

But now she wished she did.

The first thing that greeted her on the TV was news of One Ok Rock’s Yamashita Toru being in an accident. According to the news, sources say that he was hit by a car, but luckily, the driver wasn’t speeding. He was currently in the hospital, in stable condition, but he has yet to wake up, the news said.

Immediately, she sprang to her feet but glancing at the clock, she remembered that visiting hours are closed. She’ll have to wait until tomorrow.

“How could this happen?” she said to herself as the tears welled in her eyes. “But please, just be okay.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading~! More sassy Hiroki coming up~!

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!


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